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MOORS  IN  SPAIN 

A  Wonderful  Chapter  of  the 
World's  Civilization 


GREAT  WARRIORS  AND 
STATESMEN  -PROMOTERS 
OF  SCIENCE  AND  ARTS— 
THEIR  HISTORY  AND 
ACHIEVEMENTS 


rr 


M.  FLORIAN 


THE  NEW  WERNER  COMPANY 

BOOK  MANUFACTURERS 
AKRON  OHIO 


COPYRIGHT,  1910,  Br 

THE  WERNER  COMPANY 

k 


THE  WERNER   COMPANY,  AKROH,  OHIO 


PREFACE 

TO 

"  HISTORY  OF  M0ORS  IN  SPAIN." 

WE  ARE  accustomed  to  look  upon  the  followers  of 
the  Arabian  Prophet  as  little  better  than  barbarians, 
remarkable  chiefly  for  ignorance,  cruelty,  and  a  bloody 
and  persecuting  spirit  of  fanaticism.  As  it  regards  the 
character  of  the  Mohammedans  at  the  present  day, 
and,  indeed,  their  moral  and  intellectual  condition  for 
the  last  two  centuries,  there  is  no  great  error  in  this 
opinion.  But  they  are  a  degenerated  race.  There  has 
been  a  period  of  great  brilliancy  in  their  history,  when 
they  were  distinguished  for  their  love  of  knowledge 
and  the  successful  cultivation  of  science  and  arts ;  nor 
-is  it  too  much  to  say,  that  to  them  Christian  Europe 
is  indebted  for  their  deservedly  generous  impulse  in 
geography,  history,  philosophy,  medicine,  physics, 
and  mathematics,  which  led  to  the  revival  of  learning 
in  the  thirteenth  and  fourteenth  centuries.  Of  the 
various  nations  of  the  great  Moslem  family,  none  were 
more  renowned  in  arts,  as  well  as  arms,  than  the 
Moorish  conquerors  in  Spain.  Their  famous,  though 
little  known  history,  which  is  contained  in  the  follow- 
ing pages,  treats  of  a  people  who  bore  little  resem- 
blance to  any  other;  who  had  their  national  vices  and 
virtues,  as  well  as  their  characteristic  physiognomy ; 
and  who  so  long  united  the  bravery,  generosity  and 
chivalry  of  the  Europeans,  with  the  excitable  tempera- 
ment and  strong  passions  of  the  Orientals. 


PREFACE. 

To  render  the  order  of  time  more  intelligible,  and 
the  more  clearly  to  elucidate  facts,  this  historical 
sketch  will  be  divided  in  four  principal  Epochs. 

The  first  wjll  extend  from  the  beginning  of  the 
Conquests  of  the  Arabs  to  the  Establishment  of 
the  Dynasty  of  the  Ommiade  Princes  at  Cordova;  the 
second  will  include  the  reigns  of  the  Caliphs  of  the 
West;  in  the  third  will  be  related  all  that  concerns 
the  various  small  kingdoms  erected  from  the  ruins  of 
the  Caliphate  of  Cordova ;  and  the  fourth  will  compre- 
hend a  narration  of  the  prominent  events  in  the  lives 
of  the  successive  sovereigns  of  the  Kingdom  of  Gren 
ada,  until  the  period  of  the  final  expulsion  of  the  Mus- 
sulmans from  the  country. 


TABLE    OF    CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  I. 

The  Origin  of  the  Moors — The  Arabs — The  Birth  of  Mohammed— Relig- 
ion of  Mohammed — The  Progress  of  Islamism — Victories  of  the 
Mussulmans — New  Conquests  of  the  Mohammedans — The  Moors  be- 
come Mussulmans — Condition  of  Spain  under  the  Goths — Conquest 
of  Spain  by  the  Moors — The  Viceroys  of  Spain — Insurrection  of 
Prince  Pelagius — Abderamus  attempts  the  Conquest  of  'France — He 
penetrates  as  far  as  the  Loire — The  Battle  of  Tours — Civil  Wars  dis- 
tract Spain • 1 

CHAPTER  II. 

The  Kings  of  Cordova  become  the  Caliphs  of  the  West — The  Asiatic 
Mussulmans  divide — The  Dynasty  of  the  Ommiades  lose  the  Caliph- 
ate— Horrible  Massacre  of  the  Ommiades — An  Ommiade  Prince  re- 
pairs to  Spain — Abderamus,  the  first  Caliph  of  the  West — Reign  of 
Abderamus  I. — Religion  and  Fetes  of  the  Moors  of  Spain — Civil  Wars 
arise  among  the  Moors — The  Reigns  of  Hacchem  I.  and  of  Abdelazis — 
Reign  of  Abderamus  II. — Condition  of  the  Fine  Arts  at  Cordova — 
Anecdote  of  Abderamus — Reigns  of  Mohammed,  Almouzir,  and  Ab- 
dalla — Reign  of  Abderamus  III. — Embassy  from  a  Greek  Emperor — 
Magnificence  and  Gallantry  of  the  Moors — Description  of  the  City 
and  Palace  of  Zahra — Wealth  of  the  Caliphs  of  Cordova — The  Fine 
Arts  cultivated  at  Cordova — Reign  of  El  Hacchem — Laws  of  the 
Moors  and  their  Mode  of  administering  Justice — Authority  possessed 
by  Fathers  and  Old  Men — An  Illustration  of  the  Magnanimity  of 
El  Hakkam — Reign  of  Hacchem  III. — Successful  Rule  of  Mohammed 
Almonzir  as  Hadjeb  under  the  imbecile  Hacchem — Disorders  at  Cor- 
dova— End  of  the  Caliphate 19 

CHAPTER  III. 

The  principal  Kingdoms  erected  from  the  Ruins  of  the  Caliphate  of  the 
West — Condition  of  Christian  Spain  at  this  Juncture — The  Kingdom 
of  Toledo;  its  Termination — Success  of  the  Christians — The  Cid — 
The  Kingdom  of  Seville — The  Dynasty  of  the  Almoravides  hold  Su- 
premacy in  Africa — Conquests  of  the  Almoravides  in  Spain — French 
Princes  repair  to  Spain— Extinction  of  the  Kingdom  of  Saragossa — 
Foundation  of  the  Kingdom  of  Portugal — State  of  the  Fine  Arts 
among  the  Moors  at  this  Period — Abenzoar  and  Averroes — Dissensions 
between  the  Moors  and  Christians — The  Africans,  under  Mohammed 
the  Green,  land  in  Spain — Battle  of  Toloza — Tactics  of  the  Moors — 
The  discomfited  Mohammed  returns  to  Africa — Extent  of  the  Terri- 
tories still  retained  by  the  Moors  in  Spain — St.  Ferdinand  and  Jaques 
I. — Valencia  is  attacked  by  the  Aragonians — Siege  of  Cordova — Sur- 
render of  Valencia 45 

(iii) 


iv  CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  IV. 

The  Kings  of  Grenada — The  Condition  of  the  Moors ;  their  Despondency — 
Mohammed  Alhamar ;  his  Character  and  Influence  with  his  Country- 
men— He  founds  the  Kingdom  of  Grenada — Description  of  the  City 
of  Grenada  and  its  Vega — Extent  and  Resources  of  this  Kingdom — 
Reign  of  Mohammed  Alhamar  I. — The  Moorish  Sovereign  becomes 
the  Vassal  of  the  King  of  Castile — Ferdinand  III.  besieges  Seville — 
The  Taking  of  Seville— Revenues  of  the  King  of  Grenada — Military 
Forces— Cavalry  of  the  Moors — Disturbances  in  Castile-^-Reign  of 
Mohammed  II.  El  Fakik — He  forms  a  League  with  the  King  of  Mo- 
rocco— Misfortunes  of  Alphonso  of  Castile — Interview  between  Al- 
phonso  and  the  Sovereign  of  Morocco — State  of  Learning  and  the 
Fine  Arts  under  Mohammed  al  Mumenim — Description  of  the  Alham- 
bra — The  Court  of  Lions' — The  Generalif — Mohammed  III.  El  llama, 
or  the  Blind,  ascends  the  Throne  of  Grenada — Troubles  in  Grenada — 
Reign  of  Mohammed  IV.  Abenazar — Reign  of  Ismael — Reign  of  Mo- 
hammed V.  and  of  Joseph  I. — The  Battle  of  Salado — Successive  Reigns 
of  Mohammed  VI.  and  Mohammed  VII. — Horrible  Crime  of  Peter  the 
Cruel  of  Castile — Condition  of  Spain ;  of  Europe  in  general— Moham- 
med VI.  reassumes  the  Crown — Reign  of  Mohammed  VIII.  Abouhad- 
jad — Favorite  Literary  and  Scientific  Pursuits  of  the  Moors  under  the 
munificent  Rule  of  Abouhadjad — Universal  Prevalence  of  a  Taste  for 
Fiction  among  the  Arabs— Music  and  Gallantry  of  the  Moors — The 
Mixture  of  Refinement  and  Ferocity  in  the  Character  of  the  Moors — 
Description  of  the  Women  of  Grenada — The  National  Costume  of 
both  Sexes— Moorish  Customs— Folly  of  the  Grand-master  of  Alcantara 
—The  Result  of  his  Expedition — Dreadful  Death  of  Joseph  II. — Mo- 
hammed  IX.  usurps  the  Throne — Singular  Escape  of  a  Condemned 
Prince — Generous  Disposition  of  Joseph  III. — Disturbed  Condition  of 
the  Kingdom  after  his  Death— A  rapid  Succession  of  Rulers— Reign  of 
Ismael.  II. — The  Miseries  of  War  most  severely  felt  by  the  Cultivator 
of  the  Soil— Mulei-Hassem  succeeds  Ismael  II. — Marriage  of  Ferdinand 
and  Isabella— The  respective  Characters  of  these  Sovereigns— They  de- 
clare \\  ar  against  the  Grenadians— Statesmen  and  Soldiers  of  the 
Spanish  Court— Stern  Reply  of  the  Grenadian  King— Alhama  is  sur- 
prised—Civil  War  is  kindled  in  Grenada  by  the  Feuds  of  the  Rdyal 
Family — Boabdil  is  proclaimed  King — Cause  of  the  ambitious  Hopes 
of  Zagal— Boabdil  is  taken  Prisoner  by  the  Spaniards— The  Politic 
Spanish  Rulers  restore  Boabdil  to  Liberty — The  Moors  become  their 
own  Destroyers— Death  of  Mulei-Hassem— Boabdil  and  his  Uncle  di- 
vide the  Relics  of  Grenada  between  them— Baseness  of  Zagal — Boabdil 
reigns  alone  at  Grenada — Ferdinand  lays  Siege  to  the  City  of  Gren- 
ada"; Condition  of  the  City — The  Spanish  Camp— Isabella  repairs  to 
the  Camp — She  builds  a  City — Surrender  of  Grenada — Departure  of  Bo- 
abdil from  the  City — The  Entrai>ce  of  the  Spanish  Conquerors  into  the 
City— Summary  of  the  Causes  of  the  Ruin  of  the  Moors— Character- 
istics of  the  Moors— 7Anecdote  illustrative  of  their  Observance  of  the 
Laws  of  Hospitality — Christian  Persecution  of  the  Moors — Revolts  of 
the  Moors,  and  their  Results— Final  Expulsion  of  the  Moors  from 
Spam eg 


A    HISTORY 

OF  THE 

MOORS    OF    SPAIN. 


CHAPTER  I. 

THE  CONQUESTS  OF  THE  ARABS  OR  MOORS. 
Extending  from  the  end  of  the  Sixth  Century  to  the  middle  of  the  Eighth. 

THE  primitive  Moors  were  the  inhabitants  of  the 
vast  portion  of  Africa  bounded  on  the  east  by 
Egypt,  on  the  north  by  the   Mediterranean, 
on  the  west  by  the  Atlantic,  and  on  the  south  by  the 
deserts  of  Barbary. 

The  origin  of  the  Moors,  or  Mauritanians,  is,  like 
that  of  most  other  ancient  nations,  obscure,  and  the 
information  we  possess  concerning  their  early  history 
confusedly  mingled  with  fables.  The  fact,  however, 
appears  to  be  established,  that  Asiatic  emigrations 
were,  from  the  earliest  times  made  into  Africa.  In  ad- 
dition to  this,  the  historians  of  remote  ages  speak 
of  a  certain  Meleck  Yarfrick,  king  of  Arabia  Felix,  who 
conducted  a  people  called  Sabtri  into  Libya,  made  him- 
self master  of  that  country,  established  his  followers 
there,  and  gave  it  the  name  of  Africa.  It  is  from  these 
Sabians  or  Sabcci  that  the  principal  Moorish  tribes 
pretend  to  trace  their  descent.  The  derivation  of  the 

M.  of  H. — 1 — xxxiv.  -i 


2  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

name  Moors  is  also  supposed,  in  some  degree,  to  con- 
firm the  impression  that  they  came  originally  from 
Asia. 

But,  without  enlarging  upon  these  ancient  state- 
ments, let  it  suffice  to  say,  that  nearly  certain  ground 
exists  for  the  belief  that  the  original  Moors  were 
Arabians.  In  confirmation  of  this  impression,  we  find 
that,  during  every  period  of  the  existence  of  their 
race,  the  descendants  of  the  primitive  inhabitants  of 
Mauritania  have,  like  the  Arabs,  been  divided  into 
distinct  tribes,  and,  like  them,  have  pursued  a  wild 
and  wandering  mode  of  existence. 

The  Moors  of  Africa  are  known  in  ancient  history 
under  the  name  of  Nomades,  Numidas  or  Numidians, 
Getulje,  and  Massyli.  They  were  by  turns  the  sub- 
jects, the  enemies,  or  the  allies  of  the  Carthaginians, 
and  with  them  they  fell  under  the  dominion  of  the 
Romans. 

After  several  unsuccessful  revolts,  to  which  they 
were  instigated  by  their  fiery,  restless,  and  inconstant 
temper,  the  Moors  were  at  length  subjugated  by  the 
Vandals,  A.  D.  427. 

A  century  afterward  these  people  were  conquered 
by  r.elisarius:  but  the  Greeks  were  in  their  turn  sub- 
dued by  the  Arabs,  who  then  proceeded  to  achieve  the 
conquest  of  Mauritania. 

As,  from  the  period  when  that  event  occurred,  the 
Mauritanians  or  Moors,  who  were  thus  suddenly 
converted  to  Mohammedanism,  have  frequently  been 
confounded  with  the  native  Arabians,  it  will  be  proper 
to  say  a  few  words  concerning  that  extraordinary 
people :  a  people  who,  after  occupying  for  so  many 
centuries  an  insignificant  place  among  the  nations  of 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  3 

the  earth,  rapidly  rendered  themselves  masters  of  the 
greater  part  of  the  known  world. 

The  Arabs  are,  beyond  question,  one  of  the  most 
ancient  races,  of  men  in  existence;  and  have,  of  all 
others,  perhaps,  best  preserved  their  national  inde- 
pendence, and  their  distinctive  character  and  manners. 
Divided  from  the  most  remote  times  into  tribes  that 
either  wandered  in  the  desert  or  were  collected  to- 
gether in  cities,  and  obedient  to  chiefs  who  in  the 
same  person  united  the  warrior  and  the  magistrate, 
they  have  never  been  subjected  to  foreign  domination. 
The  Persians,  the  Romans,  and  the  Macedonians 
vainly  attempted  to  subdue  them :  they  only  shattered 
their  weapons  in  fragments  against  the  rocks  of  the 
Nabatheans.  Proud  of  an  origin  which  he  traced  back 
even  to  the  patriarchs  of  olden  time,  exulting  in  his 
successful  defence  of  his  liberty  and  his  rights,  the 
Arab,  from  the  midst  of  his  deserts,  regarded  the  rest 
of  mankind  as  consisting  of  mere  bands  of  slaves, 
changing  masters  as  chance  or  convenience  directed. 
Brave,  temperate,  and  indefatigable,  inured  from  in- 
fancy to  the  severest  toil,  fearing  neither  thirst,  hun- 
ger, nor  death  itself — these  were  a  people  by  whose 
assistance  a  leader  suitably  endowed  could  render 
himself  master  of  the  world.  Mohammed  appeared: 
to  him  nature  had  accorded  the  requisite  qualifications 
for  executing  such  a  design.  Courageous,  sagacious, 
eloquent,  polished,  possessed  in  an  eminent  degree  of 
the  powers  which  both  awe  and  delight  mankind, 
Mohammed  would  have  been  a  great  man  had  he  be- 
longed to  the  most  enlightened  age — among  an  ignor- 
ant and  fanatical  people  he  became  a  prophet. 

Until    Mohammed   arose   among  them,   the   Arab 


4  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIX 

tribes,  surrounded  by  Jews,  Christians,  and  idolaters, 
had  entertained  a  superstitious  faith,  compounded  of 
the  religious  belief  of  their  various  neighbors  and  that 
of  the  ancient  Sabsei.  They  fully  credited  the  exist- 
ence of  genii,  demons,  and  witchcraft,  adored  the  stars, 
and  offered  idolatrous  sacrifices.  But  Mohammed — 
after  having  devoted  many  years  to  profound  and 
solitary  meditation  upon  the  new  dogmas  he  designed 
to  establish ;  after  having  either  convinced  or  won  to 
his  interests  the  principal  individuals  of  his  own  fam- 
ily, possessing  pre-eminent  consequence  among  their 
countrymen — suddenly  began  to  preach  a  new  relig- 
ion, opposed  to  all  those  with  which  the  Arabs  were 
hitherto  familiar,  and  whose  principles  were  well- 
adapted  to  inflame  the  ardent  temper  of  that  excitable 
people. 

Children  of  Ishmael,  said  the  Prophet  to  them,  I 
bring  you  the  faith  that  was  professed  by  your  father 
Abraham,  by  Noah,  and  by  all  the  patriarchs.  There 
is  but  one  God,  the  Sovereign  Ruler  of  all  worlds :  he 
is  called  THE  MERCIFUL;  worship  Him  alone.  Be 
beneficent  toward  orphans,  slaves,  captives,  and  the 
poor:  be  just  to  all  men — justice  is  the  sister  of  piety. 
Pray  and  bestow  alms.  You  will  be  rewarded  in 
Heaven,  by  being  permitted  to  dwell  perpetually  in 
delicious  gardens,  where  limpid  waters  will  for  ever 
flow,  and  where  each  one  of  you  will  eternally  enjoy 
the  companionship  of  women  who  will  be  ever  beau- 
tiful, ever  youthful,  ever  devoted  to  you  alone.  Coura- 
geously combat  both  the  unbelieving  and  the  impious. 
Oppose  them  until  they  embrace  Tslamism  or  render 
you  tribute.  Every  soldier  who  dies  in  battle  will 
share  the  treasures  of  God ;  nor  can  the  coward  pro- 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  5 

long  his  life;  for  the  moment  when  he  is  destined  to 
be  smitten  by  the  angel  of  death  is  written  in  the  Book 
of  the  Eternal. 

Such  precepts,  announced  in  majestic  and  highly 
figurative  language,  embellished  with  the  charms  of 
verse,  and  presented  by  a  warrior,  prophet,  poet,  and 
legislator,  professing  to  be  the  representative  of  an 
angel,  to  the  most  susceptible  people  in  the  world — to 
a  people  possessing  a  passion  alike  for  the  marvellous 
and  the  voluptuous,  for  heroism  and  for  poetry — could 
scarcely  fail  to  find  disciples.  Converts  rapidly 
crowded  around  Mohammed,  and  their  numbers  were 
soon  augmented  by  persecution.  His  enemies  obliged 
the  Prophet  to  fly  from  his  native  Mecca  and  take 
refuge  in  Medina.  This  flight  was  the  epoch  of  his 
glory  and  of  the  Hegira  of  the  Mussulmans.  It  oc- 
curred A.  D.  622. 

From  this  moment  Islamism  spread  like,  a  torrent 
over  the  Arabias  and  Ethiopa.  In  vain  did  the  Jewish 
and  idolatrous  tribes  attempt  to  maintain  their  ancient 
faith ;  in  vain  did  Mecca  arm  her  soldiers  against  the 
destroyers  of  her  gods ;  Mohammed,  sword  in  hand, 
dispersed  their  armies,  seized  upon  their  cities,  and 
won  the  affections  of  the  people  whom  he  subdued,  by 
his  clemency,  his  genius,  and  his  fascinating  address. 

A  legislator,  a  pontiff,  the  chief  of  all  the  Arab 
tribes,  the  commander  of  an  invincible  army,  respected 
by  the  Asiatic  sovereigns,  adored  by  a  powerful  nation, 
and  surrounded  by  captains  who  had  become  heroes 
in  serving  under  him,  Mohammed  was  on  the  point  of 
marching  against  Heraclius,  when  his  designs  were 
for  ever  •interrupted  by  the  termination  of  his  exist- 
ence. This  event  took  place  at  Medina,  A.  D.  632, 


6  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

Hegira  ii,  and  was  the  effect  of  poison,  which  had, 
some  time  before,  been  administered  to  this  extraordinary 
man  by  a  Jewess  of  Rhaibar. 

The  death  of  the  Prophet  arrested  neither  the 
progress  of  his  religion  nor  the  triumphs  of  the  Moslem 
arms. 

Abubeker.^he  father-in-law  of  Mohammed,  became 
his  successor,  and  assumed  the  title  of  Caliph,  which 
simply  signifies  vicar.  During  his  reign  the  Saracens 
penetrated  into  Syria,  dispersed  the  armies  of  Herac- 
lius,  and  took  the  city  of  Damascus,  the  siege  of  which 
will  be  for  ever  celebrated  in  consequence  of  the 
almost  superhuman  exploits  of  the  famous  Kaled,  sur- 
named  the  Sword  of  God. 

Notwithstanding  these  successive  victories,  ajid 
the  enormous  amount  of  booty  thus  taken  from  the 
enemy  and  committed  to  his  keeping,  Abubeker  appro- 
priated to  his  own  particular  use  a  sum  scarcely  equiv- 
alent to  forty  cents  a  day. 

Omar,  the  successor  of  Abubeker,  commanded 
Kaled  to  march  against  Jerusalem.  That  city  soon 
became  the  prize  of  the  Arabs;  Syria  and  Palestine 
were  subdued ;  the  Turks  and  the  Persians  demanded 
peace ;  Heraclius  fled  from  Antioch  j  and  all  Asia 
trembled  before  Omar  and  the  terrible  Mussulmans. 

Modest,  in  spite  of  the  triumphs  that  everywhere 
attended  them,  and  attributing  their  success  to  God 
alone,  these  Moslems  preserved  unaltered  their  austere 
manners,  their  frugality,  their  severe  discipline  and 
their  reverence  for  poverty,  though  surrounded  by  the 
most  corrupt  of  the  nations  of  the  earth,  and  exposed 
to  the  seductive  influences  of  the  delicious  climates' 
and  the  luxurious  pleasures  of  some  of  the  richest  and 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  7 

*  ' 

most  beautiful  countries  in  the  world.  During  the 
sacking  of  a  city,  the  most  eager  and  impetuous 
soldier  wouM  be  instantly  arrested  in  the  work  of  pil- 
lage by  the  word  of  his  chief,  and  would,  with  the 
strictest  fidelity,  deliver  up  the  booty  he  had  obtained, 
that  it  might  be  deposited  in  the  general  treasury. 
Even  the  most  independent  and  magnificent  of  the 
heroic  chiefs  would  hasten,  in  accordance  with  the 
directions  of  the  caliph,  to  take  the  command  of  an 
army,  and  would  become  successively  generals,  private 
soldiers,  or  ambassadors,  in  obedience  to  his  slightest 
wish.  In  fine,  Omar  himself — Omar,  the  richest,  the1 
greatest,  the  most  puissant  of  the  monarchs  of  Asia, 
set  forward  upon  a  journey  to  Jerusalem,  mounted 
upon  a  red  camel,  which  bore  a  sack  of  barley,  one  of 
rice,  a  well-filled  water-skin,  and  a  wooden  vase.  Thus 
equipped,  the  caliph  traveled  through  the  midst  of 
conquered  nations,  who  crowded  around  his  path  at 
every  step,  entreating  his  blessing  and  praying  him 
to  adjudge  their  quarrels.  At  last  he  joined  his  army, 
and,  inculcating  precepts  of  simplicity,  valor,  and 
humility  upon  the  soldiers,  he  made  his  entrance  into 
the  Holy  City,  liberated  such  of  its  former  Christian 
possessors  as  had  become  the  captives  of  his  people, 
and  commanded  the  preservation  of  the  churches. 
Then  remounting  his  camel,  the  representative  of  the 
Prophet  returned  to  Medina,  to  perform  the  duties  of 
the  high-priest  of  his  religion. 

The  Mussulmans  now  advanced  towards  Egypt. 
That  country  was  soon  subdued.  Alexandria  was 
taken  by  Amrou,  one  of  the  most  distinguished  gen- 
erals of  Omar.  It  was  then  that  the  famous  library 
was  destroyed,  whose  loss  still  excites  the  profound 


8  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

regrets  of  the  learned.  The  Arabians,  though  such 
enthusiastic  admirers  of  their  national  poetry,  despised 
the  literature  of  all  the  rest  of  the  world.  Amrou 
caused  the  library  of  the  Ptolemies  to  be  burned,  yet 
this  same  Amrou  was  nevertheless  celebrated  for  his 
poetical  effusions.  He  entertained  the  sincerest  affec- 
tion and  respect  for  the  celebrated  John  the  Gram- 
marian, to  whom,  but  for  the  opposing  order  of  the 
caliph,  he  would  have  given  this  valuable  collection  of 
books.  It  was  Amrou,  too,  who  caused  the  execution 
of  a  design  worthy  of  the  best  age  of  Rome,  that  of 
connecting  the  Red  Sea  with  the  Mediterranean  by 
means  of  a  navigable  canal,  at  a  point  where  the 
waters  of  the  Nile  might  be  diverted  from  their  course 
for  its  supply.  This  canal,  so  useful  to  Egypt,  and  so 
important  to  the  commerce  of  both  Europe  and  Asia, 
was  accomplished  in  a  few  months.  The  Turks,  in 
more  modern  times,  have  suffered  it  to  be  destroyed. 

Amrou  continued  to  advance  into  Africa,  while  the 
other  Arabian  commanders  passed  the  Euphrates  and 
conquered  the  Persians.  But  Omar  was  already  no 
more,  and  Othman  occupied  his  place. 

It  was  during  the  reign  of  this  caliph  that  the 
Saracens,  banishing  for  ever  its  enfeebled  Greek  mas- 
ters conquered  Mauritania,  or  the  country  of  the 
Moors  of  Africa,  A.  D.  647,  Heg.  27. 

The  invaders  met  with  serious  resistance  only  from 
the  warlike  tribes  of  the  Bereberes.  That  bold  and 
pastoral  people,  the  descendants  of  the  ancient  inhab- 
itants of  Numidia,  and  preserving,  even  to  this  day,  a 
species  of  independence,  intrenched  as  they  are  in  the 
Atlas  Mountains,  long  and  successfully  resisted  the 
conquerors  of  the  Moors.  A  Moslem  general  named 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  9 

Akba  finally  succeeded  in  subjugating  them,  and  in 
compelling  them  to  adopt  the  laws  and  faith  of  his 
country. 

After  that  achievement  Akba  carried  his  arms  to 
the  extreme  western  point  of  Africa,  the  ocean  alone 
resisting  him  in  his  progress.  There,  inspired  by 
courage  and  devotion  with  feelings  of  the  highest  en- 
thusiasm, he  forced  his  horse  into  the  waves,  and, 
drawing  his  sabre,  cried,  "God  of  Mohammed,  thou  be- 
holdest  that,  but  for  the  element  which  arrests  me,  I 
would  have  proceeded  in  search  of  unknown  nations, 
whom  I  would  have  forced  to  adore  thy  name !" 

Until  this  epoch,  the  Moors,  under  the  successive 
dominion  of  the  Carthaginians,  the  Romans,  the  Van- 
dals, and  the  Greeks,  had  taken  but  little  interest  in 
the  affairs  of  their  different  masters. 

Wandering  in  the  deserts,  they  occupied  them- 
selves chiefly  with  the  care  of  their  flocks;  paid  the 
arbitrary  imposts  levied  upon  them,  sometimes  pas- 
sively enduring  the  oppression  of  their  rulers,  and 
sometimes  assaying  to  break  their  chains;  taking 
refuge,  after  each  defeat  of  their  efforts,  in  the  Atlas 
Mountains,  or  in  the  interior  of  their  country. 

Their  religion  was  a  mixture  of  Christianity  and 
idolatry;  their  manners  those  of  the  enslaved  Nom- 
ades :  rude,  ignorant,  and  wretched,  their  condition  was 
the  prototype  of  what  it  now  is  under  the  tyrants  of 
Morocco. 

But  the  presence  of  the  Arabs  rapidly  produced  a 
great  change  among  these  people.  A  common  origin 
with  that  of  their  new  masters,  together  with  similar- 
ity of  language  and  temperament,  contributed  to  bind 
the  conquered  to  their  conquerors. 


10  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

The  announcement  of  a  religion  which  had  been 
preached  by  a  descendant  of  Ishmael,  whom  the  Moors 
regarded  as  their  father;  the  rapid  conquests  of  the 
Mussulmans,  who  were  already  masters  of  half  of  Asia 
and  a  large  portion  of  Africa,  and  who  threatened  to 
enslave  the  world,  aroused  the  excitable  imaginations 
of  the  Moors,  and  restored  to  their  national  character 
all  its  passionate  energy.  They  embraced  the  dogmas 
of  Mohammed  with  transport;  they  united  with  the 
Arabs,  volunteered  to  serve  under  the  Moslem  ban- 
ners, and  suddenly  became  simultaneously  enamored 
with  Islamism  and  with  glory. 

This  reunion,  which  doubled  the  military  strength 
of  the  two  united  nations,  was  disturbed  for  some  time 
by  the  revolt  of  the  Bereberes,  who  never  yielded  their 
liberty  under  any  circumstances. 

The  reigning  caliph,  Valid  the  First,  despatched 
into  Egypt  Moussa-ben-Nazir,  a  judicious  and  valiant 
commander,  at  the  head  of  a  hundred  thousand  men, 
A.  D.  708,  Heg.  89. 

Moussa  defeated  the  Bereberes,  restored  quiet  in 
Mauritania,  and  seized  upon  Tangier,  which  belonged 
to  the  Goths  of  Spain. 

Master  of  an  immense  region  of  country,  of  a  re- 
doubtable army,  and  of  a  people  who  considered  his 
supremacy  as  essential  to  their  well-being,  the  Saracen 
general  from  this  period  contemplated  carrying  his 
arms  into  Spain. 

That  beautiful  kingdom,  after  having  been  suc- 
cessively under  the  yoke  of  the  Carthaginians  and  the 
Romans,  had  finally  become  the  prey  of  the  Barbar- 
ians. The  Alani,  the  Suevi,  and  the  Vandals  had 
divided  its  provinces  among  them;  but  Euric,  one  of 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  11 

the  Visigoths,  who  entered  the  country  from  the  south 
of  Gaul,  had,  towards  the  end  of  the  fifth  century, 
gained  possession  of  the  whole  of  Spain,  and  trans- 
mitted it  to  his  descendants. 

The  softness  of  the  climate,  together  with  the 
effects  of  wealth  and  luxury,  gradually  enfeebled 
these  conquerors,  creating  vices  from  which  they  had 
been  previously  free,  and  depriving  them  of  the  war- 
like qualities  to  which  alone  they  had  been  indebted 
for  their  success.  Of  the  kings  who  succeeded  Euric, 
some  were  Arians  and  others  Catholics,  who  aban- 
doned their  authority  to  the  control  of  bishops,  and 
occupied  a  throne  shaken  to  its  center  by  internal  dis- 
turbances. Roderick,  the  last  of  these  Gothic  sov- 
ereigns, polluted  the  throne  by  his  vices ;  and  both  his- 
tory and  tradition  accuse  him  of  the  basest  crimes. 
Indeed,  in  the  instance  of  nearly  all  these  tyrants,  their 
vices  either  directly  occasioned,  or  were  made  the  pre- 
text of  their  final  ruin. 

The  fact  is  well  established,  that  Count  Julian  and 
his  brother  Oppas,  archbishop  of  Toledo,  both  of  them 
distinguished  and  influential  men,  favored  the  irrup- 
tion of  the  Moors  into  Spain. 

Tarik,  one'  of  the  most  renowned  captains  of  his 
time,  was  sent  into  Spain  by  Moussa.  He  had  at  first 
but  few  troops ;  but  he  was  not  by  this  prevented  from 
defeating  the  large  army  that,  by  command  of  Roder- 
ick, the  last  Gothic  king,  opposed  his  course. 

Subsequently,  having  received  re-enforcements 
from  Africa,  Tarik  vanquished  Roderick  himself  at  the 
battle  of  Xeres,  where  that  unfortunate  monarch  per- 
ished during  the  general  flight  in  which  the  conflict 
terminated,  A.  D.  714,  Heg.  96. 


12  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

'  After  this  battle,  the  Mohammedan  general,  profit- 
ing by  his  victory,  penetrated  into  Estremadura,  Anda- 
lusia, and  the  two  Castiles,  and  took  possession  of  the 
city  of  Toledo.  Being  soon  after  joined  by  Moussa, 
whose  jealousy  of  the  glory  his  lieutenant  was  so  rap- 
idly acquiring,  prompted  him  to  hasten  to  his  side, 
these  two  remarkable  commanders,  dividing  their 
troops  into  several  corps,  achieved,  in  a  few  months, 
the  conquest  of  the  whole  of  Spain. 

It  should  be  observed,  that  these  Moors,  whom 
several  historians  have  represented  as  bloodthirsty 
barbarians,  did  not  deprive  the  people  whom  they  had 
subjugated  either  of  their  faith,  their  churches,  or  the 
administrators  of  their  laws.  They  exacted  from  the 
Spaniards  only  the  tribute  they  had  been  accustomed 
to  pay  their  kings.  One  cannot  but  question  the  exist- 
ence of  the  ferocity  that  is  ascribed  to  them,  when  it  is 
remembered  that  the  greater  part  of  the  Spanish  cities 
submitted  to  the  invaders  without  malting  the  least 
attempt  at  resistance;  that  the  Christians  readily 
united  themselves  with  the  Moors ;  that  the  inhabitants 
of  Toledo  desired  to  assume  the  name  of  Musarabs;  and 
that  Queen  Egilona,  the  widow  of  Roderick,  the  last 
of  the  Gothic  sovereigns,  publicly  espoused,  with  the 
united  consent  of  the  two  nations,  Abdelazis,  the  son 
of  Moussa. 

Moussa,  whom  the  success  of  Tarik  had  greatly 
exasperated,  wishing  to  remove  a  lieutenant  whose 
achievements  eclipsed  his  own,  preferred  an  accusation 
against  him  to  the  caliph.  Valid  recalled  them  both, 
but  refused  to  adjudge  their  difference,  and  suffered 
them  to  die  at  court  from  chagrin  at  seeing  themselves 
forgotten. 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  13 

Abdelazis,  the  husband  of  Egilona,  became  gov- 
ernor of  Spain  A-.  D.  718,  Heg.  100,  but  did  not  long 
survive  his  elevation.  Alahor,  who  succeeded  him, 
carried  his  arms  into  Gaul,  subdued  the  Warbonnais, 
and  was  preparing  to  push  his  conquests  still  farther, 
when  he  learned  that  Pelagius,  a  prince  of  the  blood- 
royal  of  the  Visigoths,  had  taken  refuge  in  the  moun- 
tains of  Asturia  with  a  handful  of  devoted  followers; 
that  with  them  he  dared  to  brave  the  conquerors  of 
Spain,  and  had  formed  the  bold  design  of  attempting 
to  rid  himself  of  their  yoke.  Alahor  sent  some  troops 
against  him.  Pelagius,  intrenched  with  his  little  army 
in  the  mountain  gorges,  twice  gave  battle  to  the  Mus- 
sulmans, seized  upon  several  castles,  and,  reanimating 
the  spirits  of  the  Christians,  whose  courage  had  been 
almost  extinguished  by  so  long  a  succession  of  re- 
verses, taught  the  astonished  Spaniards  that  the  Moors 
were  not  invincible. 

The  insurrection  of  Pelagius  occasioned  the  recall 
of  Alahor  by  the  Caliph  Omar  II.  Elzemah,  his  suc- 
cessor, was  of  the  opinion  that  the  most  certain  means  of 
repressing  revolts  among  a  people  is  to  render  them 
prosperous  and  contented.  He  therefore  devoted  him- 
self to  the  wise  and  humane  government  of  Spain ;  to 
the  regulation  of  imposts,  until  then  quite  arbitrary; 
and  to  quieting  the  discontents  of  the  soldiery,  and 
establishing  their  pay  at  a  fixed  rate.  A  lover  of  the 
fine  arts,  which  the  Arabs  began  from  that  time  to  cul- 
tivate, Elzemah  embellished  Cordova,  which  was  his 
capital,  and  attracted  thither  the  savans  of  the  age. 
He  was  himself  the  author  of  a  book  containing  a 
description  of  the  cities,  rivers,  provinces,  and  ports  of 
Spain ;  of  the  metals,  mines,  and  quarries  it  possesses ; 


14  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

and,  in  short,  of  almost  every  object  of  interest  either 
in  science  or  government. 

But  little  disturbed  by  the  insurrectionary  move- 
ments of  Pelagius,  whose  power  was  confined  to  the 
possession  of  some  inaccessible  mountain  fortresses, 
Elzemah  did  not  attempt  to  force  him  from  his  strong- 
holds, but,  impelled  by  the  ardent  desire  of  extending 
the  Moorish  conquests  into  France,  with  which  the 
governors  of  Spain  were  ever  inflamed,  he  passed  the 
Pyrenees,  and  perished  in  a  battle  fought  against 
Eudes,  duke  of  Aquitania,  A.  D.  722,  Heg.  104. 

During  the  remainder  of  the  Caliphate  of  Yezid  II., 
several  governors  followed  each  other  in  rapid  succes- 
sion after  the  death  of  Elzemah.  None  of  their  actions 
merit  recital ;  but,  during  this  period,  the  brave  Pe- 
lagius aggrandized  his  petty  state,  advancing  into  the 
mountains  of  Leon,  and,  in  addition,  making  himself 
master  of  several  towns. 

This  hero,  whose  invincible  daring  roused  the 
Asturians  and  Cantabrians  to  struggle  for  liberty,  laid 
the  foundations  of  that  powerful  monarchy  whose  war- 
riors afterward  pursued  the  Moors  even  to  the  rocks 
of  the  Atlas. 

The  Moslems,  who  dreamed  only  of  new  conquests, 
made  no  considerable  efforts  against  Pelagius :  they 
were  confident  of  checking  his  rebellion  with  the  ut- 
most ease  when  they  should  have  accomplished  the 
subjugation  of  the  French  dominions;  and  that  desire 
alone  fired  the  ardent  soul  of  the  new  governor  Abdal- 
rahman.  or,  as  he  is  commonly  called,  Abderamus. 

His  love  of  glory,  his  valor,  his  genius,  and,  above 
all,  his  immeasurable  ambition,  made  the  Mussulman 
governor  regard  this  conquest  as  one  that  could  be 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  15 

easily  effected;  but  he  himself  was  destined  to  be  the 
vanquished. 

Charles  Martel,  the  son  of  Pepin  d'Heristal,  and 
the  grandfather  of  Charlemagne,  whose  exploits  effaced 
the  recollection  of  those  of  his  father,  and  whose  fame 
was  not  eclipsed  by  that  of  his  grandson,  was  at  this 
time  mayor  of  the  palace,  under  the  last  princes  of  the 
first  race ;  or,  rather,  Charles  was  the  real  monarch  of 
the  French  and  German  nations. 

Eudes,  duke  of  Aquitania,  the  possessor  of  Gas- 
cony  and  Guienne,  had  long  maintained  a  quarrel  with 
the  French  hero.  Unable  longer,  without  assistance, 
to  resist  his  foe,  he  sought  an  alliance  with  a  Moor 
named  Munuza,  who  was  the  governor  of  Catalonia 
and  the  secret  enemy  of  Abderamus.  These  two  pow- 
erful vassals,  both  discontented  with  their  respective 
sovereigns,  and  inspired  as  much  by  fear  as  dislike, 
united  themselves  in  the  closest  bonds,  in  despite  of 
the  difference  in  their  religious  faith.  The  Christian 
duke  did  not  hesitate  to  give  his  daughter  in  marriage 
to  his  Mohammedan  ally,  and  the  Princess  Numerance 
espoused  the  Moorish  Munuza,  as  Queen  Egilona  had 
espoused  the  Moorish  Abdelazis. 

Abderamus,  when  informed  of  this  alliance,  imme- 
diately divined  the  motives  which  had  induced  it.  He 
soon  assembled  an  army,  penetrated  with  rapidity  into 
Catalonia,  and  attacked  Munuza,  who  was  wounded 
in  a  fruitless  endeavor  to  fly,  and  afterward  perished 
by  his  own  hand.  His  captive  wife  was  conducted  into 
the  presence  of  the  victorious  governor.  Abderamus, 
struck  with  her  beauty,  sent  the  fair  Numerance  as  a 
present  to  the  Caliph  Haccham,  whose  regard  she 
elicited;  and  thus,  by  a  singular  chance,  a  princess  of 


16  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

Gascony  became  an  inmate  of  the  seraglio  of  a  sov- 
ereign of  Damascus. 

Not  content  with  having  so  signally  punished  Mun- 
uza,  Abderamus  crossed  the  Pyrenees,  traversed  Na- 
varre, entered  Guienne,  and  besieged  and  took  the  City 
of  Bordeaux.  Eudes  attempted,  at  the  head  of  an 
army,  to  arrest  his  progress,  but  was  repelled  in  a 
decisive  engagement.  Everything  yielded  to  the  Mus- 
sulman arms :  Abderamus  pursued  his  route,  ravaged 
Perigord,  Saintonge,  and  Poitou,  appeared  in  triumph 
in  Touraine,  and  paused  only  when  within  view  of  the 
streaming  ensigns  of  Charles  Martel. 

Charles  came  to  this  rencounter  followed  by  the 
forces  of  France,  Asturia,  and  Bourgogne,  and  at- 
tended by  the  veteran  warriors  whom  he  was  accus- 
tomed to  lead  to  victory.  The  Duke  of  Aquitania  was 
also  in  the  camp.  Charles  forgot  his  private  injuries 
in  the  contemplation  of  the  common  danger:  this  dan- 
ger was  pressing:  the  fate  of  France  and  Germany — 
indeed,  of  the  whole  of  Christendom,  depended  on  the 
event  of  the  approaching  conflict. 

Abderamus  was  a  rival  worthy  of  the  son  of  Pepin. 
Flushed,  like  him,  with  the  proud  recollection  of  nu- 
merous victories;  at  the  head  of  an  innumerable  army; 
surrounded  by  experienced  captains,  who  had  been  the 
frequent  witnesses  of  his  martial  triumphs ;  and  long 
inspired  with  the  Avarmest  hopes  of  finally  adding  to 
the  dominion  of  Islamism  the  only  country  belonging 
to  the  ancient  Roman  empire  that  still  remained  un- 
subdued by  the  Saracens,  the  Moorish  leader  met  his 
brave  foe,  upon  equal  terms,  on  the  battle-field  of 
Tours,  A.  D.  733,  Heg.  114. 

The  action  was  long  and  bloody.    Abderamus  was 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  17 

Iain ;  and  this  dispiriting  loss,  without  doubt,  decided 
he  defeat  of  his  army.  Historians  assert  that  more 
ban  three  hundred  thousand  men  perished.  This 
tatement  is  probably  exaggerated;  but  it  is  certainly 
rue,  that  the  Moors,  who  had  thus  penetrated  into  the 
nidst  of  France,  were  relentlessly  pursued  after  their 
lef*eat,  and  many  of  them  were  unable  to  escape  from 
he  arms  of  the  victors  and  the  vengeance  of  the 
»eople. 

This  memorable  battle,  of  which  we  possess  no  de- 
ails,  saved  France  from  the  yoke  of  the  Arabs,  and 
jffectually  arrested  their  spreading  dominion. 

Once  again,  subsequent  to  this  reverse,  the  Moors 
ittempted  to  penetrate  France,  and  succeeded  in  seiz- 
ing upon  Avignon ;  but  Charles  Martel  defeated  them 
mew,  retook  the  captured  city,  drove  them  from  Nar- 
Donne,  and  deprived  them  forever  of  the  hope  with 
which  they  had  so  often  flattered  themselves. 

After  the  death  of  Abderamus,  Spain  was  torn  by 
dissensions  between  the  two  governors  named  succes- 
sively by  the  caliph.  A  third  pretender  arrived  from 
Africa.  A  fourth  added  himself  to  the  list;  factions 
multiplied ;  the  different  parties  often  had  recourse  to 
arms ;  chiefs  were  assassinated,  cities  taken,  and  prov- 
inces ravaged. 

The  details  of  these  events  are  variously  related  by 
different  historians,  but  possess  little  interest  in  the 
narrations  of  any. 

These  civil  wars  lasted  nearly  twenty  years.  The 
Christians,  who  had  retired  into  Asturia,  profited  by 
them  to  the  utmost.  Alphonso  I.,  the  son-in-law  and 
successor  of  Pelagius,  imitated  the  career  of  that  hero. 
He  seized  upon  a  part  of  Galicia  and  Leon,  repulsed 

M.  of  H.— XXXIV— 2 


18  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

the  Mussulman  troops  who  were  sent  to  oppose  him, 
and  rendered  himself  master  of  several  towns. 

The  Moors,  occupied  by  their  domestic  quarrels, 
neglected  to  arrest  the  progress  of  Alphonso,  and  from 
that  time  the  growth  of  a  miniature  kingdom  com- 
menced, whose  interests  were  inimical  to  those  of  the 
Saracens  in  Spain. 

After  many  crimes  and  combats,  a  certain  Joseph 
had  succeeded  in  triumphing  over  his  different  rivals, 
and  was  at  last  reigning  supreme  in  Cordova,  when 
there  occurred  a  memorable  event  in  the  East,  which 
was  destined  greatly  to  affect  the  condition  of  Spain. 

From  that  period,  A.  D.  749,  Heg.  134,  commences 
the  second  epoch  of  the  empire  of  the  Moors  of  Spain, 
which  makes  it  necessary  to  revert  briefly  to  the  his- 
tory of  the  Eastern  caliphs. 


CHAPTER  II. 

THE     KINGS     OF     CORDOVA     BECOME     THE     CALIPHS     OF 
THE     WEST. 

Extending  from  the  middle  of  the   Eighth  to  the  commencement   of  the 
Eleventh  Century. 

WE  HAVE  seen  that,  under  their  first  three 
caliphs,  Abubeker,  Omar,  and  Othman, 
the  Arabian  conquerors  of  Syria,  Persia, 
and  Africa  preserved  their  ancient  manners,  their  sim- 
plicity of  character,  their  obedience  to  the  successors 
of  the  Prophet,  and  their  contempt  for  luxury  and 
wealth :  but  what  people  could  continue  to  withstand 
the  influence  of  such  an  accumulation  of  prosperity? 
These  resistless  conquerors  turned  their  weapons 
against  each  other:  they  forgot  the  virtues  which  had 
rendered  them  invincible,  and  assisted  by  their  dis- 
sensions in  dismembering  the  empire  that  their  valor 
had  created. 

The  disastrous  effects  of  the  baneful  spirit  that  had 
thus  insidiously  supplanted  the  original  principles  of 
union,  moderation,  and  prudence,  by  which,  as  a  na- 
tion, the  Moslems  had  been  actuated,  were  first  man- 
ifested in  the  assassination  of  the  Caliph  Othman. 

All,  the  friend,  companion,  and  adopted  son  of  the 
Prophet,  whose  courage,  achievements,  and  relation- 
ship to  Mohammed,  as  the  husband  of  his  only 
daughter,  had  rendered  him  so  dear  to  the  Mussul- 
mans, was  announced  as  the  successor  of  Othman. 


20  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

But  Moavias,  the  governor  of  Syria,  refused  to  rec- 
ognize the  authority  of  AH,  and,  under  the  guidance 
of  the  sagacious  Amrou,  the  conqueror  of  Egypt, 
caused  himself  to  be  proclaimed  Caliph  of  Damascus. 
Upon  this,  the  Arabians  divided :  those  of  Medina  sus- 
taining Ali,  and  those  of  Syria  Moavias.  The  first  took 
the  name  of  Alides,  the  others  styled  themselves  Om- 
miades, deriving  their  denomination  from  the  grand- 
father of  Moavias.  Such  was  the  origin  of  the  famous 
schism  which  still  separates  the  Turks  and  Persians. 

Though  Ali  succeeded  in  vanquishing  Moavias  in 
the  field,  he  did  not  avail  himself  judiciously  of  the  ad- 
vantage afforded  him  by  his  victory.  He  was  soon 
after  assassinated,  and  the  spirit  and  courage  of  his 
party  vanished  with  the  occurrence  of  that  event.  The 
sons  of  Ali  made  efforts  to  reanimate  the  ardor  of  his 
partisans,  but  in  vain. 

Thus,  in  the  midst  of  broils,  revolts,  and  civil  wars, 
the  Ommiades  still  remained  in  possession  of  the  Cal- 
iphate of  Damascus.  It  was  during  the  reign  of  one  of 
these  princes,  Valid  the  First,  that  the  Arabian  con- 
quests extended  in  the  East  to  the  banks  of  the  Ganges, 
and  in  the  West  to  the  shores  of  the  Atlantic.  The 
Ommiades,  however,  were  for  the  most  part  feeble,  but 
they  were  sustained  by  able  commanders,  and  the 
ancient  valor  of  the  Moslem  soldiers  was  not  yet  de- 
generated. 

After  the  Ommiades  had  maintained  their  empire 
for  the  space  of  ninety-three  years,  Mervan  II.,  the 
last  caliph  of  the  race,  was  deprived  of  his  throne  and 
his  life  through  the  instrumentality  of  Abdalla, -a  chief 
of  the  tribe  of  the  Abbassides,  who  were,  like  the  Om- 
miades, near  relatives  of  Mohammed. 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  21 

Aboul-Abbas,  nephew  of  Abdalla,  supplanted  the 
former  caliph.  With  him  commenced  the  dynasty  of 
the  Abbassides,  so  celebrated  in  the  East  for  their  love 
of  science  and  their  connection  with  the  names  of 
Haroun  Al  Raschid,  Almamon,  and  the  Bermasides. 

The  Abbassides  retained  the  caliphate  during  five 
successive  centuries.  At  the  termination  of  that 
period,  they  were  despoiled  of  their  power  by  the  Tar- 
tar posterity  of  Gengis  Khan,  after  having  witnessed 
the  establishment  of  a  race  of  Egyptian  caliphs  named 
Fatimites,  the  pretended  descendants  of  Fatima,  the 
daughter  of  Mohammed. 

Thus  was  the  Eastern  empire  of  the  Arabs  event- 
ually destroyed :  the  descendants  of  Ishmael  returned 
to  the  country  from  which  they  had  originally  sprung, 
and  gradually  reverted  to  nearly  the  same  condition  as 
that  in  which  they  existed  when  the  Prophet  aros<» 
among  them. 

These  events,  from  the  founding  of  the  dynasty  of 
the  Abbassides,  have  been  anticipated  in  point  of  time 
in  the  relation,  because  henceforth  the  history  of  Spain 
is  no  longer  intermingled  with  that  of  the  East. 

After  having  dwelt  briefly  upon  an  event  intimately 
connected  as  well  with  the  establishment  of  the  Ab- 
bassides upon  the  Moslem  throne  as  with  the  history 
of  Spain,  we  will  enter  continuously  upon  the  main 
subject  of  our  work. 

To  return,  then,  for  a  moment,  to  the  downfall  of 
the  Ommiade  caliphs. 

When  the  cruel  Abdalla  had  placed  his  nephew, 
Aboul-Abbas,  on  the  throne  of  the  Caliphs  of  Damas- 
cus, he  formed  the  horrible  design  of  exterminating  the 
Ommiades.  These  princes  were  very  numerous.  With 


22  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

the  Arabs,  among  whom  polygamy  is  permitted,  and 
where  numerous  offspring  are  regarded  as  the  peculiar 
gift  of  Heaven,  it  is  not  unusual  to  find  several  thous- 
and individuals  belonging  to  the  same  family. 

Abdalla,  despairing  of  effecting  the  destruction  of 
the  race  of  his  enemies,  dispersed  as  they  were  by  ter- 
ror, published  a  general  amnesty  to  all  the  Ommiades 
who  should  present  themselves  before  him  on  a  certain 
day.  Those  ill-fated  people,  confiding  in  the  fulfilment 
of  his  solemn  promises,  hastened  to  seek  safety  at  the 
feet  of  Abdalla.  The  monster,  when  they  were  all 
assembled,  caused  his  soldiers  to  surround  them,  and 
then  commanded  them  all  to  be  butchered  in  his  pres- 
ence. After  this  frightful  massacre,  Abdalla  ordered 
the  bloody  bodies  to  be  ranged  side  by  side  in  close 
order,  and  then  to  be  covered  with  boards  spread  with 
Persian  carpets.  Upon  this  horrible  table  he  caused  a 
magnificent  feast  to  be  served  to  his  officers.  One 
shudders  at  the  perusal  of  such  details,  but  they  serve 
to  portray  the  character  of  this  Oriental  conqueror. 

A  solitary  Ommiade  escaped  the  miserable  fate  of 
his  brethren;  a  prince  named  Abderamus.  A  fugitive 
wanderer,  he  reached  Egypt,  and  concealed  himself  in 
the  solitary  recesses  of  its  inhospitable  deserts. 

The  Moors  of  Spain,  faithful  to  the  Ommiades, 
though  their  governor  Joseph  had  recognized  the  au- 
thority of  the  Abbassides,  had  no  sooner  learned  that 
there  existed  in  Egypt  a  scion  of  the  illustrious  family 
to  which  they  still  retained  their  attachment,  than  they 
secretly  sent  deputies  to  offer  him  their  crown.  Ab- 
deramus foresaw  the  obstacles  with  which  he  would  be 
compelled  to  struggle,  but.  guided  by  the  impulses  of  a 
soul  whose  native  greatness  had  been  strengthened  and 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  23 

purified  by  adversity,  he  did  not  hesitate  to  accept  the 
proposal  of  the  Moors. 

.The  Ommiade  prince  arrived  in  the  Peninsula  A.  D. 
755,  Heg.  138.  He  speedily  gained  the  hearts  of  his 
new  subjects,  assembled  an  army,  took  possession  of 
Seville,  and,  soon  after,  marched  towards  Cordova,  the 
capital  of  Mussulman  Spain.  Joseph,  in  the  name  of 
the  Abbassides,  vainly  attempted  to  oppose  his  prog- 
ress. The  governor  was  vanquished  and  Cordova 
taken,  together  with  several  other  cities. 

Abderamus  was  now  not  only  the  acknowledged 
king  of  Spain,  but  was  proclaimed  Caliph  of  the  West, 
A.  D.  759,  Heg.  142. 

During  the  supremacy  of  the  Ommiades  in  the  em- 
pire of  the  East,  Spain  had  continued  to  be  ruled  by 
governors  sent  thither  from  Asia  by  those  sovereigns; 
but  it  was  now  permanently  separated  from  the  great 
Arabian  empire,  and  elevated  into  a  powerful  and  inde- 
pendent state,  acknowledging  no  farther  allegiance  to 
the  Asiatic  caliphs  either  in  civil  or  religious  matters. 
Thus  was  the  control  hitherto  exercised  over  the  affairs 
of  Spain  by  the  Oriental  caliphs  for  ever  wrested  from 
them  by  the  last  surviving  individual  of  that  royal  race 
whom  Abdalla  had  endeavored  to  exterminate. 

Abderamus  the  First  established  the  seat  of  his  new 
greatness  at  Cordova.  He  was  not  long  allowed  peace- 
fully to  enjoy  it,  however.  Revolts  instigated  by  the 
Abbassides,  incursions  into  Catalonia  by  the  French, 
and  wars  with  the  kings  of  Leon,  incessantly  demanded 
his  attention ;  but  his  courage  and  activity  gained  the 
ascendency  even  over  such  numerous  enemies.  He 
maintained  his  throne  with  honor,  and  merited  his 
beautiful  surname  of  The  Just. 


24  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

Abderamus  cultivated  and  cherished  the  fine  arts, 
even  in  the  midst  of  the  difficulties  and  dangers  by 
which  he  was  surrounded.  It  was  he  who  first  estab- 
lished schools  at  Cordova  for  the  study  of  astronomy, 
mathematics,  medicine,  and  grammar.  He  was  also 
a  poet,  and  was  considered  the  most  eloquent  man  of 
his  age. 

This  first  Caliph  of  the  West  adorned  and  fortified 
his  capital,  erected  a  superb  palace,  which  he  sur- 
rounded by  beautiful  gardens,  and  commenced  the 
construction  of  a  grand  mosque,  the  remains  of  which 
continue,  even  at  this  day,  to  excite  the  admiration  of 
the  traveler.  This  monument  of  magnificence  was 
completed  during  the  reign  of  Hacchem,  the  son  and 
successor  of  Abderamus.  It  is  thought  that  the  Span- 
iards have  not  preserved  more  than  one-half  of  the 
original  structure,  yet  it  is  now  six  hundred  feet  long 
and  two  hundred  wide,  and  is  supported  by  more  than 
three  hundred  columns  of  alabaster,  jasper,  and  marble. 
Formerly  there  were  twenty-four  doors  of  entrance, 
composed  of  bronze  covered  with  sculptures  of  gold; 
and  nearly  five  thousand  lamps  nightly  served  to 
illuminate  this  magnificent  edifice. 

In  this  mosque  the  caliphs  of  Cordova  each  Friday 
conducted  the  worship  of  the  people,  that  being  the 
day  consecrated  to  religion  by  the  precepts  of  Moham- 
med. Thither  all  the  Mussulmans  of  Spain  made  pil- 
grimages, as  those  of  the  East  resorted  to  the  temple 
at  Mecca.  There  they  celebrated,  with  great  solemnity, 
the  fete  of  the  great  and  the  lesser  Beiram,  which 
corresponds  with  the  Passover  of  the  Jews ;  that  of  the 
New  Year,  and  that  of  Miloud,  or  the  anniversary  of 
the  birth  of  Mohammed.  Each  of  these  festivals  lasted 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  25 

for  eight  days.  During  that  time  all  labor  ceased,  the 
people  sent  presents  to  each  other,  exchanged  visits, 
and  offered  sacrifices.  Disunited  families,  forgetting 
their  differences,  pledged  themselves  to  future  concord, 
and  consummated  their  renewed  amity  by  delivering 
themselves  up  to  the  enjoyment  of  every  pleasure  per- 
mitted by  the  laws  of  the  Koran. 

At  night  the  city  was  illuminated,  the  streets  were 
festooned  with  flowers,  and  the  promenades  and  public 
places  resounded  with  the  melody  of  various  musical 
instruments. 

The  more  worthily  to  celebrate  the  occasion,  alms 
were  lavishly  distributed  by  the  wealthy,  and  the  ben- 
edictions of  the  poor  mingled  with  the  songs  of  re- 
joicing that  everywhere  ascended  around  them. 

Abderamus,  having  imbibed  with  his  Oriental  edu- 
cation a  fondness  for  these  splendid  fetes,  first  intro- 
duced a  taste  for  them  into  Spain.  Uniting,  in  his 
character  of  caliph,  the  civil  and  the  sacerdotal  author- 
ity in  his  own  person,  he  regulated  the  religious  cere- 
monies on  such  occasions,  and  caused  them  to  be  cele- 
brated with  all  the  pomp  and  magnificence  displayed 
under  similar  circumstances  by  the  sovereigns  of 
Damascus. 

Though  the  caliph  of  Cordova  was  the  enemy  of  the 
Christians,  and  numbered  many  of  them  among  his 
subjects,  he  refrained  from  persecuting  them,  but  de- 
prived the  bishoprics  of  their  religious  heads  and  the 
churches  of  their  priests,  and  encouraged  marriages  be- 
tween the  Moors  and  Spaniards.  By  these  means  the 
sagacious  Moslem  inflicted  more  injury  upon  the  true 
religion  than  could  have  been  effected  by  the  most 
rigorous  severity. 


26  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

Under  the  reign  of  Abderamus,  the  successors  of 
Pelagius,  still  retaining  possession  of  Asturia,  though 
weakened  by  the  internal  dissensions  that  already  be- 
gan to  prevail  among  them,  were  forced  to  submit  to 
to  the  payment  of  the  humiliating  tribute  of  a  hundred 
young  females,  Abderamus  refusing  to  grant  them 
peace  except  at  this  price. 

Master  of  entire  Spain,  from  Catalonia  to  the  two 
seas,  the  first  caliph  died  A.  D.  788,  Heg.  172,  after  a 
glorious  reign  of  thirty  years,  leaving  the  crown  to  his 
son  Hacchem,  the  third  of  his  eleven  sons. 

After  the  death  of  Abderamus  the  empire  was  dis- 
turbed by  revolts,  and  by  wars  between  the  new  caliph 
and  his  brothers,  his  uncles,  or  other  princes  of  the 
royal  blood.  These  civil  wars  were  inevitable  under  a 
despotic  government,  where  not  even  the  order  of  suc- 
cession to  the  throne  was  regulated  by  law.  To  be  an 
aspirant  to  the  supreme  authority  of  the  state,  it  was 
sufficient  to  belong  to  the  royal  race  ;  and  as  each  of  the 
caliphs,  almost  without  exception,  left  numerous  sons, 
all  these  princes  became  the  head  of  a  faction,  every 
one  of  them  established  himself  in  some  city,  and,  de- 
claring himself  its  sovereign,  took  up  arms  in  opposi- 
tion to  the  authority  of  the  caliph.  From  this  arose 
the  innumerable  petty  states  that  were  created,  annihi- 
lated, and  raised  again  with  each  change  of  sovereigns. 
Thus  also  originated  the  many  instances  of  conquered, 
deposed,  or  murdered  kings,  that  make  the  history  of 
the  Moors  of  Spain  so  difficult  of  methodical  arrange- 
ment and  so  monotonous  in  the  perusal. 

Hacchem,  and,  after  him,  his  son  Abdelazis-el-Hac- 
chem,  retained  possession  of  the  caliphate  notwith- 
standing these  unceasing  dissensions.  The  former  fin- 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  27 

ished  the  beautiful  mosque  commenced  by  his  father, 
and  carried  his  arms  into  France,  in  which  kingdom 
his  generals  penetrated  as  far  as  Narbonne.  The  latter, 
Abdelazis-el-Hacchem,  less  fortunate  than  his  prede- 
cessor, did  not  succeed  in  opposing  the  Spaniards  and 
his  refractory  subjects  with  unvarying  success.  His 
existence  terminated  in  the  midst  of  national  difficul- 
ties, and  his  son  Abderamus  became  his  successor. 

Abderamus  II.  was  a  great  monarch,  notwithstand- 
ing the  fact  that,  during  his  reign,  the  power  of  the 
Christians  began  to  balance  that  of  the  Moors. 

The  Christians  had  taken  advantage  of  the  con- 
tinual divisions  which  prevailed  among  their  former 
conquerors.  Alphonso  the  Chaste,  king  of  Asturia, 
a  valiant  and  politic  monarch,  had  extended  his  domin- 
ions and  refused  to  pay  tribute  of  the  hundred  young 
maidens.  Ramir,  the  successor  of  Alphonso,  main- 
tained this  independence,  and  several  times  defeated 
the  Mussulmans.  Navarre  became  a  kingdom,  and 
Aragon  had  its  independent  sovereigns,  and  was  so 
fortunate  as  to  possess  a  government  that  properly 
respected  the  rights  of  the  people.  The  governors  of 
Catalonia,  until  then  subjected  to  the  kings  of  France, 
took  advantage  of  the  feebleness  of  Louis  le  Debon- 
naire  to  render  themselves  independent.  In  fine,  all 
the  north  of  Spain  declared  itself  in  opposition  to  the 
Moors,  and  the  south  became  a  prey  to  the  irruptions 
of  the  Normans. 

Abderamus  defended  himself  against  all  these  ad- 
versaries, and  obtained,  by  his  warlike  talents,  the 
surname  of  Elmonzaffer,  which  signifies  the  Victorious. 
And,  though  constantly  occupied  by  the  cares  of  gov- 
ernment and  of  successive  wars,  this  monarch  afforded 


28  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

encouragement  to  the  fine  arts,  embellished  his  capital 
by  a  new  mosque,  and  caused  to  be  erected  a  superb 
aqueduct,  from  which  water  was  carried  in  leaden 
pipes  throughout  the  city  in  the  utmost  abundance. 

Abderamus  possessed  a  soul  capable  of  enjoying 
the  most  refined  and  elevated  pleasures.  He  attracted 
to  his  court  poets  and  philosophers,  with  whose  society 
he  frequently  delighted  himself;  thus  cultivating  in  his 
own  person  the  talents  he  encouraged  in  others.  He 
invited  from  the  East  the  famous  musician  Ali-Zeriab, 
who  established  himself  in  Spain  through  the  benefi- 
cence of  the  caliph,  and  originated  the  celebrated 
school  whose  pupils  afterward  afforded  such  delight 
to  the  Oriental  world. 

The  natural  ferocity  of  the  Moslems  yielded  to  the 
influence  of  the  chivalrous  example  of  the  caliph,  and 
Cordova  became,  under  the  dominion  of  Abderamus, 
the  home  of  taste  and  pleasure,  as  well  as  the  chosen 
abode  of  science  and  the  arts. 

A  single  anecdote  will  serve  to  illustrate  the  ten- 
derness and  generosity  that  so  strongly  characterized 
this  illustrious  descendant  of  the  Ommiades. 

One  day  a  favorite  female  slave  left  her  master's 
presence  in  high  displeasure,  and,  retiring  to  her  apart- 
ment, vowed  that,  sooner  than  open  the  door  for  the 
admittance  of  Abderamus,  she  would  suffer  it  to  be 
walled  up.  The  chief  eunuch,  alarmed  at  this  dis- 
course, which  he  regarded  as  almost  blasphemous, 
hastened  to  prostrate  himself  before  the  Prince  of  Be- 
lievers, and  to  communicate  to  him  the  horrible  pur- 
pose of  the  rebellious  slave.  Abderamus  smiled  at  the 
resolution  of  the  offended  beauty,  and  commanded  the 
eunuch  to  cause  a  wall  composed  of  pieces  of  coin  to 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  29 

be  erected  before  the  door  of  her  retreat,  and  avowed 
his  intention  not  to  pass  this  barrier  until  the  fair 
slave  should  have  voluntarily  demolished  it,  by  pos- 
sessing herself  of  the  materials  of  which  it  was  formed. 
iThe  historian  adds,  that  the  same  evening  the  caliph 
entered  the  apartments  of  the  appeased  favorite  with- 
out opposition. 

This  prince  left  forty-five  sons  and  nearly  as  many 
daughters.  Mohammed,  the  eldest  of  his  sons,  suc- 
ceeded him,  A.  D.  852,  Heg.  238.  The  reigns  of  Mo- 
hammed and  his  successors,  Almanzor  and  Abdalla, 
offer  to  the  historian  nothing  for  a  period  of  fifty  years 
but  details  of  an  uninterrupted  continuation  of 
troubles,  civil  wars,  and  revolts,  by  which  the  gov- 
ernors of  the  principal  cities  sought  to  render  them- 
selves independent.  - 

Alphonso  the  Great,  king  of  Asturia,  profited  by 
these  dissensions  the  more  effectually  to  confirm  his 
own  power.  The  Normans,  from  another  side,  rav- 
aged Andalusia  anew.  Toledo,  frequently  punished, 
but  ever  rebellious,  often  possessed  local  Sovereigns. 
Saragossa  imitated  the  example  of  Toledo.  The  au- 
thority of  the  caliphs  was  weakened,  and  their  empire, 
convulsed  in  every  part,  seemed  on  the  point  of  disso- 
lution, when  Abderamus  III.,  the  nephew  of  Abdalla, 
ascended  the  throne  of  Cordova,  and  restored  for  some 
time  its  pristine  splendor  and  power,  A.  D.  912, 
Heg.  300. 

This  monarch,  whose  name,  so  dear  to  the  Mos- 
lems, seemed  to  be  an  auspicious  omen,  took  the  title 
of  Emir-al-Mmnenim,  which  signifies  Prince  of  true  Be- 
lievcrs. 

Victory  attended  the  commencement  of  his  reign; 


30  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

the  rebels,  whom  his  predecessors  had  been  unable  to 
reduce  to  submission,  were  defeated ;  factions  were 
dissipated,  and  peace  and  order  re-established. 

Being  attacked  by  the  Christians  soon  after  he  had 
assumed  the  crown,  Abderamus  applied  for  assistance 
to  the  Moors  of  Africa.  He  maintained  long  wars 
against  the  kings  of  Leon  and  the  courts  of  Castile, 
who  wrested  Madrid,  then  a  place  of  comparative  in- 
significance, from  him,  A.  D.  931,  Heg.  319.  Often 
attacked  and  sometimes  overcome,  but  always  great 
and  redoubtable  notwithstanding  occasional  reverses, 
Abderamus  knew  how  to  repair  his  losses,  and -avail 
himself  to  the  utmost  of  his  good  fortune.  A  profound 
statesman,  and  a  brave  and  skilful  commander,  he 
fomented  divisions  among  the  Spanish  princes,  carried 
his  arms  frequently  into  the  very  center  of  their  states, 
and,  having  established  a  navy,  seized,  in  addition, 
upon  Ceuta  and  Seldjemessa  on  the  African  coast. 

Notwithstanding  the  incessant  wars  which  occupied 
him  during  the  whole  of  his  reign,  the  enormous  ex- 
pense to  which  he  was  subjected  by  the  maintenance 
of  his  armies  and  his  naval  force,  and  the  purchase  of 
military  assistance  Jtom  Africa,  Emir-al-Mumenim 
supported  a  luxury  and  splendor  at  his  court,  the  de- 
tails of  which  would  seem  to  be  the  mere  creations  of 
the  imagination,  were  they  not  attested  by  every  his- 
torian of  the  time. 

The  contemporary  Greek  emperor,  Constantine  XI., 
wishing  to  oppose  an  enemy  capable  of  resisting  their 
power,  to  the  Abbassides  of  Bagdad,  sent  ambassadors 
to  Cordova  to  form  an  alliance  with  Abderamus. 

The  Caliph  of  the  West,  flattered  that  Christians 
should  come  from  so  distant  a  part  of  the  world  to 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  31 

request  his  support,  signalized  the  occasion  by  the  dis- 
play of  a  gorgeous  pomp  which  rivaled  that  of  the  most 
splendid  Asiatic  courts.  He  sent  a  suit  of  attendants 
to  receive  the  ambassadors  at  Jean.  Numerous  corps 
of  cavalry,  magnificently  mounted  and  attired,  awaited 
their  approach  to  Cordova,  and  a  still  more  brilliant 
display  of  infantry  lined  the  avenues  to  the  palace. 
The  courts  were  covered  with  the  most  superb  Persian 
and  Egyptian  carpets,  and  the  walls  hung  with  cloth 
of  gold.  The  caliph,  blazing  with  brilliants,  and  seated 
on  a  dazzling  throne,  surrounded  by  his  family,  his 
viziers,  and  a  numerous  train  of  courtiers,  received  the 
Greek  envoys  in  a  hall  in  which  all  his  treasures  were 
displayed.  The  Hadjeb,  a  dignitary  whose  office 
among  the  Moors  corresponded  to  that  of  the  ancient 
French  mayors  of  the  palace,  introduced  the  ambassa- 
dors. They  prostrated  themselves  before  Abderamus 
in  amazement  at  the  splendor  of  this  array,  and  pre- 
sented to  the  Moorish  sovereign  the  letter  of  Constan- 
tine,  written  on  blue  parchment  and  enclosed  in  a  box 
of  gold.  The  caliph  signed  the  treaty,  loaded  the  im- 
perial messengers  with  presents,  and  ordered  that  a 
numerous  suite  should  accompany  them  even  to  the 
walls  of  Constantinople. 

Abderamus  III.,  though  unceasingly  occupied  either 
by  war  or  politics,  was  all  his  life  enamored  of  one  of 
his  wives  named  Zahra.  He  built  a  city  for  her  two 
miles  distant  from  Cordova,  which  he  named  Zahra. 

This  place  is  now  destroyed.  It  was  situated  at  the 
base  of  a  high  mountain,  from  which  flowed  numerous 
perpetual  streams,  whose  waters  ran  in  all  directions 
through  the  streets  of  the  city,  diffusing  health  and 
coolness  in  their  course,  and  forming  ever-flowing 


32  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

fountains  in  ..the  center  of  the  public  places.  The 
houses,  each  built  after  the  same  model,  were  sur- 
mounted by  terraces  and  surrounded  by  gardens 
adorned  with  groves  of  orange,  laurel,  and  lime,  and 
in  which  the  myrtle,  the  rose,  and  the  jasmine  mingled 
in  pleasing  confusion  with  all  the  varied  productions 
of  that  sunny  and  delicious  clime.  The  statue  of  the 
beautiful  Zahra  was  conspicuously  placed  over  the 
principal  gate  of  this  City  of  Love. 

But  the  attractions  of  the  city  were  totally  eclipsed 
by  those  of  the  fairy-like  palace  of  the  favorite.  Ab- 
deramus,  as  the  ally  of  their  Imperial  master,  de- 
manded the  assistance  of  the  most  accomplished  of  the 
Greek  architects ;  and  the  sovereign  of  Constantinople, 
which  was  at  that  time  the  chosen  home  of  the  fine 
arts,  eagerly  complied  with  his  desires,  and  sent  the 
caliph,  in  addition,  forty  columns  of  granite  of  the 
rarest  and  most  beautiful  workmanship.  Independent 
of  these  magnificent  columns,  there  were  employed  in 
the  construction  of  this  palace  more  than  twelve  hun- 
dred others,  formed  of  Spanish  and  Italian  marble. 
The  walls  of  the  apartment  named  the  Saloon  of  the 
Caliphate,  were  covered  with  ornaments  of  gold;  and 
from  the  mouths  of  several  animals,  composed  of  the 
same  metal,  gushed  jets  of  water  that  fell  into  an  ala- 
baster fountain,  above  which  was  suspended  the  famous 
pearl  that  the  Emperor  Leo  had  presented  to  the  caliph 
as  a  treasure  of  inestimable  value.  In  the  pavilion 
where  the  mistress  of  this  enchanting  abode  usually 
passed  the  evening  with  the  royal  Moor,  the  ceiling 
was  composed  of  gold  and  burnished  steel,  incrusted 
with  precious  stones.  And  in  the  resplendent  light 
from  these  brilliant  ornaments  by  a  hundred  crystal 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN          .          33 

lustres,  flashed  the  waters  of  a  fountain,  formed  like  a 
sheaf  of  grain,  from  polished  silver,  whose  delicate 
spray  was  received  again  by  the  alabaster  basin  from 
whose  center  it  sprung. 

The  reader  might  hesitate  to  believe  these  recitals ; 
might  suppose  himself  perusing  Oriental  tales,  or  that 
the  author  was  indebted  for  his  history  to  the  Thousand 
and  One  Nights,  were  not  the  facts  here  detailed  attested 
by  the  Arabian  writers,  and  corroborated  by  foreign 
authors  of  unquestionable  veracity.  It  is  true  that  the 
architectural  magnificence,  the  splendid  pageantry,  the 
pomp  of  power  that  characterized  the  reign  of  this 
illustrious  Saracenic  king,  resembled  nothing  with 
which  we  are  now  familiar;  but  the  incredulous  ques- 
tioners of  their  former  existence  might  be  asked 
whether,  had  the  pyramids  of  Egypt  been  destroyed  by 
an  earthquake,  they  would  now  credit  historians  who 
should  give  us  the  exact  dimensions  of  those  stupen- 
dous structures? 

The  writers  from  whom  are  derived  the  details  that 
have  been  given  concerning  the  court  of  the  Spanish 
Mussulmans,  mention  also  the  sums  expended  in  the 
erection  of  the  palace  and  city  of  Zahra.  ,  The  cost 
amounted  annually  to  three  hundred  thousand  dinars 
of  gold,  and  twenty-five  years  hardly  sufficed  for  the 
completion  of  this  princely  monument  of  chivalrous 
devotion. 

To  these  enormous  expenditures  should  be  added 
the  maintenance  of  a  seraglio,  in  which  the  women,  the 
slaves,  and  the  black  and  white  eunuchs  amounted  to 
the  number  of  six  thousand  persons.  The  officers  of 
the  court,  and  the  horses  destined  for  their  use,  were 
/*r.  of  H.— xxxiv— 3 


34 

in  equally  lavish  proportion.  The  royal  guard  alone 
was  composed  of  twelve  thousand  cavaliers. 

When  it  is  remembered,  that,  from  being  contin- 
ually at  war  with  the  Spanish  princes,  Abderamus  was 
obliged  to  keep  numerous  armies  incessantly  on  foot, 
to  support  a  naval  force,  frequently  to  hire  stipendiar- 
ies from  Africa,  and  to  fortify  and  preserve  in  a  state 
of  defence  the  ever-endangered  fortresses  on  his  fron- 
tiers, it  is  hardly  possible  to  comprehend  how  his  rev- 
enues sufficed  for  the  supply  of  such  immense  and 
varied  demands.  But  his  resources  were  equally  im- 
mense and  varied ;  and  the  sovereign  of  Cordova  was 
perhaps  the  richest  and  most  powerful  monarch  then 
in  Europe. 

He  held  possession  of  Portugal,  Andalusia,  the 
kingdom  of  Grenada,  Mercia,  Valencia,  and  the  greater 
part  of  New  Castile,  the  most  beautiful  and  fertile 
.countries  of  Spain. 

These  provinces  were  at  that  time  extremely  pop- 
ulous, and  the  Moors  had  attained  the  highest  perfec- 
tion in  agriculture.  Historians  assure  us,  that  there 
existed  on  the  shores  of  the  Guadalquiver  twelve 
thousand  villages;  and  that  a  traveler  could  not  pro- 
ceed through  the  country  without  encountering  some 
hamlet  every  quarter  of  an  hour.  There  existed  in  the 
dominions  of  the  caliph  eighty  great  cities,  three  hun- 
dred of  the  second  order,  and  an  infinite  number  of 
smaller  towns.  Cordova,  the  capital  of  the  kingdom, 
enclosed  within  its  walls  two  hundred  thousand  houses 
and  nine  hundred  public  baths. 

All  this  prosperity  was  reversed  by  the  expulsion  of 
the  Moors  from  the  Peninsula.  The  reason  is  apparent : 
the  Moorish  conquerors  of  Spain  did  not  persecute 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  35 

their  vanquished  foes;  the  Spaniards,  when  they  had 
subdued  the  Moors,  oppressed  and  banished  them. 

The  revenues  of  the  caliphs  of  Cordova  are  repre- 
sented to  have  amounted  annually  to  twelve  millions 
and  forty-five  thousand  dinars  of  gold.  Independent  of 
this  income  in  money,  many  imposts  were  paid  in  the 
products  of  the  soil;  and  among  an  industrious  agri- 
cultural population,  possessed  of  the  most  fertile  coun- 
try in  the  world,  this  rural  wealth  was  incalculable. 
The  gold  and  silver  mines,  known  in  Spain  from  the 
earliest  times,  were  another  source  of  wealth.  Com- 
merce, too,  enriched  alike  the  sovereign  and  the  people. 
The  commerce  of  the  Moors  was  carried  on  in  many 
articles:  silks,  oils,  sugar,  cochineal,  iron,  wool  (which 
was  at  that  time  extremely  valuable),  ambergris, •  yel- 
low amber,  loadstone,  antimony,  isinglass,  rock-crystal, 
sulphur,  saffron,  ginger,,  the  product  of  the  coral-beds 
on  the  coast  of  Andalusia,  of  the  pearl  fisheries  on  that 
of  Catalonia,  and  rubies,  of  which  they  had  discovered 
two  localities,  one  at  Malaga  and  another  at  Beja. 
These  valuable  articles  were,  either  before  or  after 
being  wrought,  transported  to  Egypt  or  other  parts  of 
(Africa,  and  to  the  East.  '  The  emperors  of  Constanti- 
nople, always  allied  from  necessity  to  the  caliphs  of 
Cordova,  favored  these  commercial  enterprises,  and,  by 
their  countenance,  assisted  in  enlarging,  to  a  vast  ex- 
tent, the  field  of  their  operations;  while  the  neighbor- 
hood of  Africa,  Italy,  and  France  contributed  also  to 
their  prosperity. 

The  arts,  which  are  the  children  of  commerce,  and 
support  the  existence  of  their  parent,  added  a  new 
splendor  to  the  brilliant  reign  of  Abderamus.  The 
superb  palaces  he  erected,  the  delicious  gardens  he 


36  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

created,  and  the  magnificent  fetes  he  instituted,  drew 
to  his  court  from  all  parts  architects  and  artists  of 
every  description.  Cordova  was  the  home  of  industry 
and  the  asylum  of  the  sciences.  Celebrated  schools  of 
geometry,  astronomy,  chemistry,  and  medicine  were 
established  there — schools  which,  a  century  afterward, 
produced  such  men  as  Averroes  and  Abenzoar.  So  dis- 
tinguished were  the  learned  Moorish  poets,  philoso- 
phers, and  physicians,  that  Alphonso'  the  Great,  king 
of  Asturia,  wishing  to  confide  the  care  of  his  son  Or- 
dogno  to  teachers  capable  of  conducting  the  education 
of  a  prince,  appointed  him  two  Arabian  preceptors, 
notwithstanding  the  difference  of  religious  faith,  and 
the  hatred  entertained  by  the  Christians  towards  the 
Mussulmans.  And  one  of  the  successors  of  Alphonso, 
Sancho  the  Great,  king  of  Leon,  being  attacked  by  a 
disease  which  it  was  supposed  would  prove  fatal  in  its 
effects,  went  unhesitatingly  to  Cordova,  claimed  the 
hospitality  of  his  national  enemy,  and  placed  himself 
under  the  care  of  the  Mohammedan  physicians,  who 
eventually  succeeded  in  curing  the  malady  of  the  Chris- 
tian king. 

This  singular  fact  does  as  much  honor  to  the  skill 
of  the  learned  Saracens  as  to  the  magnanimity  of  the 
caliph  and  the  trusting  confidence  of  Sancho. 

Such  was  the  condition  of  the  caliphate  of  Cordova 
under  the  dominion  of  Abderamus  III.  He  occupied 
the  throne  fifty  years,  and  we  have  seen  with  what  de- 
gree of  honor  to  himself  and  benefit  to  his  people. 
Perhaps  nothing  will  better  illustrate  the  superiority 
of  this  prince  to  monarchs  generally  than  the  following 
fragment,  which  was  found,  traced  by  his  own  hand, 
among  his  papers  after  his  death : 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  37 

"  Fifty  years  have  passed  away  since  I  became 
caliph.  Riches,  honors,  pleasures,  I  have  enjoyed  them 
all :  I  am  satiated  with  them  all.  Rival  kings  respect 
me,  fear,  and  envy  me.  All  that  the  heart  of  man  can 
desire,  Heaven  has  lavishly  bestowed  on  me.  In  this 
long  period  of  seeming  felicity  I  have  estimated  the 
number  of  days  during  which  I  have  enjoyed  perfect 
happiness:  they  amount  to  fourteen  !  Mortals,  learn  to 
appreciate  greatness,  the  world,  and  human  life !  " 

The  successor  of  this  monarch  was  his  eldest  son, 
Aboul-Abbas  El  Hakkam,  who  assumed,  like  his  father, 
the  title  of  Emir-al-Mumenim. 

The  coronation  of  El  Hakkam  was  celebrated  with 
great  pomp  in  the  city  of  Zahra.  The  new  caliph  there 
received  the  oath  of  fidelity  from  the  chiefs  of  the 
scythe  guard,  a  numerous  and  redoubtable  corps,  com- 
posed of  strangers,  which  Abderamus  III.  had  formed. 
The  brothers  and  relations  of  El  Hakkam,  the  viziers 
and  their  chief,  the  Hadjeb,  the  white  and  black 
eunuchs,  the  archers  and  cuirassiers  of  the  guard,  all 
swore  obedience  to  the  monarch.  These  ceremonies 
were  followed  by  the  funeral  honors  of  Abderamus, 
whose  body  was  carried  to  Cordova,  and  there  depos- 
ited in  the  tomb  of  his  ancestors. 

Aboul-Abbas  El  Hakkam,  equally  wise  with  his 
father,  but  less  warlike  than  he,  enjoyed  greater  tran- 
quillity during  his  reign.  His  was  the  dominion  of  jus- 
tice and  peace.  The  success  and  vigilance  of  Abder- 
amus had  extinguished,  for  a  time,  the  spirit  of  revolt, 
and  prepared  the  way  for  the  continued  possession  of 
these  great  national  blessings. 

Divided  among  themselves,  the  Christian  kings  en- 


38  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

tertainecl  no  designs  of  disturbing  their  infidel  neigh- 
bors. 

The  truce  that  existed  between  the  Mussulmans  and 
Castile  and  Leon  was  broken  but  once  during  the  life 
of  El  Hacchem.  The  caliph  then  commanded  his  army 
in  person,  and  completed  a  glorious  campaign,  taking 
several  cities  from  the  Spaniards,  and  convincing  them, 
by  his  achievements,  of  the  policy  of  future  adherence 
to  the  terms  of  their  treaty  with. their  Saracen  oppo- 
nents. 

During  the  remainder  of  his  reign  the  Moorish  sov- 
ereign applied  himself  wholly  to  promoting  the  happi- 
ness of  his  subjects,  to  the  cultivation  of  science,  to  the 
collection  of  an  extensive  library,  and,  above  all,  to 
enforcing  a  strict  observance  of  the  laws. 

The  laws  of  the  Moors  were  few  and  simple.  It 
does  not  appear  that  there  existed  among  them  any 
civil  laws  apart  from  those  incorporated  with  their 
religious  code.  Jurisprudence  was  reduced  to  the  ap- 
plication of  the  principles  contained  in  the  Koran.  The 
caliph,  as  the  supreme  head  of  their  religion,  possessed 
the  power  of  interpreting  these  principles ;  but  even  he 
would  not  have  ventured  to  violate  them.  At  least  as 
often  as  once  a  week,  he  publicly  gave  audience  to  his 
subjects,  listened  to  their  complaints,  examined  the 
guilty,  and,  without  quitting  the  tribunal,  caused  pun- 
ishment to  be  immediately  inflicted.  The  governors 
placed  by  the  sovereign  over  the  different  cities  and 
provinces,  commanded  the  miltary  force  belonging  to 
each,  collected  the  public  revenues,  superintended  the 
administration  of  the  police,  and  adjudged  the  offences 
committed  within  their  respective  governments.  Pub- 
lic officers  well  versed  in  the  laws  discharged  the  func- 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  39 

tions  of  notaries,  and  gave  a  juridical  form  to  records 
relating  to  the  possession  of  property.  When  any  law- 
suits arose,  magistrates  called  cadis,  whose  authority 
was  respected  both  by  the  king  and  the  people,  could 
alone  decide  them.  These  suits  were  speedily  deter- 
mined ;  lawyers  and  attorneys  were  unknown,  and  there 
was  no  expense  nor  chicanery  connected  with  them. 
Each  party  pleaded  his  cause  in  person,  and  the  decrees 
of  the  cadi  were  immediately  executed. 

Criminal  jurisprudence  was  scarcely  more  compli- 
cated. The  Moors  almost  invariably  resorted  to  the 
punishment  of  retaliation  prescribed  by  the  founder  of 
their  religion.  In  truth,  the  wealthy  were  permitted  to 
exonerate  themselves  from  the  charge  of  bloodshed  by 
the  aid  of  money;  but  it  was  necessary  that  the  rela- 
tions of  the  deceased  should  consent  to  this :  the  caliph 
himself  would  not  have  ventured  to  withhold  the  head 
of  one  of  his  own  sons  who  had  been  guilty  of  homi- 
cide, if  its  delivery  had  been  inexorably  insisted  upon. 

This  simple  code  would  not  have  sufficed  had  not 
the  unlimited  authority  exercised  by  fathers  over  their 
children,  and  husbands  over  their  wives,  supplied  the 
deficiencies  of  the  laws.  With  regard  to  this  implicit 
obedience  on  the  part  of  a  family  to  the  will  of  its  chief, 
the  Moors  preserved  the  ancient  patriarchal  customs 
of  their  ancestors.  Every  father  possessed,  under  his 
own  roof,  rights  nearly  equal  to  those  of  the  caliph. 
He  decided,  without  appeal,  the  quarrels  of  his  wives 
and  those  of  his  sons :  he  punished  with  severity  the 
slightest  faults,  and  even  possessed  the  power  of  pun- 
ishing certain  crimes  with  death.  Age  alone  conferred 
this  supremacy.  An  old  man  was  always  an  object  of 
reverence.  His  presence  arrested  disorders:  the  most 


40  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

haughty  young  man  cast  down  his  eyes  at  meeting  him, 
and  listened  patiently  to  his  reproofs.  In  short,  the 
possessor  of  a  white  beard  was  everywhere  invested 
with  the  authority  of  a  magistrate. 

This  authority,  which  was  more  powerful  among 
the  Moors  than  that  of  their  laws,  long  subsisted  unim- 
paired at  Cordova.  That  the  wise  Hacchem  did  noth- 
ing to  enfeeble  it,  may  be  judged  from  the  following 
illustration : 

A  poor  woman  of  Zahra  possessed  a  small  field  con- 
tiguous to  the  gardens  of  the  caliph.  El  Hacchem, 
wishing  to  erect  a  pavilion  there,  directed  that  the 
owner  should  be  requested  to  dispose  of  it  to  him. 
But  the  woman  refused  every  remuneration  that  was 
offered  her,  and  declared  that  she  would  never  sell  the 
heritage  of  her  ancestry.  The  king  was,  doubtless,  not 
informed  of  the  obstinacy  of  this  woman ;  but  the  su- 
perintendent of  the  palace  gardens,  a  minister  worthy 
of  a  despotic  sovereign,  forcibly  seized  upon  the  field, 
and  the  pavilion  was  built.  The  poor  woman  hastened 
in  despair  to  Cordova,  to  relate  the  story  of  her  misfor- 
tune to  the  Cadi  Bechir,  and  to  consult  him  respecting 
the  course  she  should  pursue.  The  cadi  thought  that 
the  Prince  of  true  Believers  had  no  more  right  than  any 
other  man  to  possess  himself  by  violence  of  the  prop- 
erty of  another,  and  he  endeavored  to  discover  some 
means  of  recalling  to  his  recollection  a  truth  which  the 
best  of  rulers  will  sometimes  forget. 

One  day,  as  the  Moorish  sovereign  was  surrounded 
by  his  court  in  the  beautiful  pavilion  built  on  the 
ground  belonging  to  the  poor  woman,  the  Cadi  Bechir 
presented  himself  before  him,  seated  on  an  ass,  and 
carrying  in  his  hand  a  large  sack.  The  astonished 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  41 

caliph  demanded  his  errand.  "  Prince  of  the  Faithful !  '* 
replied  Bechir,  "  I  come  to  ask  permission  of  thee  to  fill 
this  sack  with  the  earth  upon  which  thou  standest." 
The  caliph  cheerfully  consented  to  this  desire,  and  the 
cadi  rilled  his  sack  with  the  earth.  He  then  left  it 
standing,  and,  approaching  his  sovereign,  entreated 
him  to  crown  his  goodness  by  aiding  him  in  loading  his 
ass  with  its  burden.  El  Hacchem,  amused  by  the  re- 
quest, yielded  to  it,  and  attempted  to  raise  the  sack. 
Scarcely  able  to  move  it,  he  let  it  fall  again,  and,  laugh- 
ing, complained  of  its  enormous  weight.  "  Prince  of 
Believers !  "  said  Bechir  then,  with  impressive  gravity, 
"  this  sack,  which  thou  findest  so  heavy,  contains,  nev- 
ertheless, but  a  small  portion  of  the  field  thou  hast 
usurped  from  one  of  thy  subjects ;  how  wilt  thou  sus- 
tain the  weight  of  this  entire  field  when  thou  shalt  ap- 
pear in  the  presence  of  the  Great  Judge  charged  with 
this  iniquity?"  The  caliph,  struck  with  this  address, 
embraced  the  cadi,  thanked  him,  acknowledged  his 
fault,  and  immediately  restored  to  the  poor  woman  the 
field  of  which  she  had  been  despoiled,  together  with  the 
pavilion  and  everything  it  contained. 

The  praise  due  to  a  despotic  sovereign  capable  of 
such  an  action,  is  inferior  only  to  that  which  should  be 
accorded  to  the  cadi  who  induced  him  to  perform  it. 

After  reigning  twelve  years,  El  Hakkam  died,  A.  D. 
9?'6,  Heg.  366.  His  son  Hacchem  succeeded  him. 

This  prince  was  an  infant  when  he  ascended  the 
throne,  and  his  intellectual  immaturity  continued 
through  life.  During  and  after  his  minority,  a  cele- 
brated Moor  named  Mohammed  Almanzor,  being  in- 
vested with  the  important  office  of  Hadjeb,  governed 
the  state  with  wisdom  and  success. 


42  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

Almanzor  united  to  the  talents  of  a  statesman  the 
genius  of  a  great  commander.  He  was  the  most 
formidable  and  fatal  enemy  with  whom  the  Christians 
had  yet  been  obliged  to  contend.  He  ruled  the  Moor- 
ish empire  twenty-six  years  under  the  name  of  the 
indolent  Hacchem.  More  than  fifty  different  times  he. 
carried  the  terrors  of  war  into  Castile  or  Asturfa:  he 
took  and  sacked  the  cities  of  Barcelona  and  Leon,  and 
advanced  even  to  Compostella,  destroying  its  famous 
church  and  carrying  the  spoils  to  Cordova. 

The  genius  and  influence  of  Mohammed  temporarily 
restored  the  Moors  to  their  ancient  strength  and  en- 
ergy, and  forced  the  whole  Peninsula  to  respect  the 
rights  of  his  feeble  master,  who,  like  another  Sardan- 
apalus,  dreamed  away  his  life  in  the  enjoyment  of 
effeminate  and  debasing  pleasures. 

But  this  was  the  last  ray  of  unclouded  splendor  that 
shone  upon  the  empire  of  the  Ommiades  in  Spain.  The 
kings  of  Leon  and  Navarre,  and  the  Count  of  Castile, 
united  their  forces  for  the  purpose  of  opposing  the  re- 
doubtable Almanzor. 

The  opposing  armies  met  near  Medina-Celi.  The 
conflict  was  long  and  sanguinary,  and  the  victory 
doubtful.  The  Moors,  after  the  termination  of  the 
combat,  took  to  flight,  terrified  by  the  fearful  loss  they 
had  sustained ;  and  Almanzor,  whom  fifty  years  of  un- 
interrupted military  success  had  persuaded  that  he  was 
invincible,  died  of  grief  at  this  first  mortifying  reverse. 

With  this  great  man  expired  the  good  fortune  of  the 
Saracens  of  Spain.  From  the  period  of  his  death,  the 
Spaniards  continued  to  increase  their  own  prosperity 
by  the  gradual  ruin  of  the  Moors. 

The  sons  of  the  habjeb  Almanzor  successively  re- 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  43 

placed  their  illustrious  father;  but,  in  inheriting  his 
power,  they  did  not  inherent  his  talents:  Factions  were 
again  created.  One  of  the  relations  of  the  caliph  took 
up  arms  against  him,  and  possessed  himself  of  the  per- 
son of  the  monarch,  A.  D.  1005,  Heg.  596 ;  and,  though 
the  rebellious  prince  dared  not  sacrifice  the  life  of  Hac- 
chem,  he  imprisoned  him,  and  spread  a  report  of  his 
death. 

This  news  reaching  Africa,  an  Ommiade  prince 
hastened  thence  to  Spain  with  an  army,  under  pretext 
of  avenging  the  death  of  Hacchem.  The  Count  of  Cas- 
tile formed  an  alliance  with  this  stranger,  and  civil  war 
was  kindled  in  Cordova.  It  soon  spread  throughout 
Spain,  and  the  Christian  princes  availed  themselves  of 
its  disastrous  effects  to  repossess  themselves  of  the 
cities  of  which  they  had  been  deprived  during  the- 
supremacy  of  Almanzor. 

The  imbecile  Hacchem,  negotiating  and  trifling 
alike  with  all  parties,  was  finally  replaced  on  the 
throne,  but  was  soon  after  forced  again  to  renounce 
it  to  save  his  life. 

After  this  event  a  multitude  of  conspirators  were 
in  turn  proclaimed  caliph,  and  in  turn  deposed,  pois- 
oned, or  otherwise  murdered.  Almundir,  the  last  lin- 
gering branch  of  the  race  of  the  Ommiades,  was  bold 
enough  to  claim  the  restoration  of  the  rights  of  his 
family,  even  amid  the  tumult  of  conflicting  parties. 
His  friends  represented  to  him  the  dangers  he  was 
about  to  encounter.  "  Should  I  reign  but  one  day," 
replied  he,  "and  expire  the  next,  I  would  not  murmur 
at  my  fate ! "  But  the  desire  of  the  prince,  even  to 
this  extent,  was  not  gratified ;  he  was  assassinated 
without  obtaining  possession  of  the  caliphate. 


44  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

Usurpers  of  momentary  authority  followed.  Jal- 
mar-ben  Mohammed  was  the  last  in  order.  His  death 
terminated  the  empire  of  the  Caliphs  of  the  West, 
which  had  been  possessed  by  the  dynasty  of  the  Om- 
miades  for  the  period  of  three  centuries,  A.  D.  1027, 
Heg.  416. 

With  the  extinction  of  this  line  of  princes  vanished 
the  power  and  the  glory  of  Cordova. 

The  governors  of  the  different  cities,  who  had 
hitherto  been  the  vassals  of  the  court  of  Cordova, 
profiting  by  the  anarchy  that  prevailed,  erected  them- 
selves into  independent  sovereigns. — That  city  was 
therefore  no  longer  the  capital  of  a  kingdom,  though 
it  still  retained  the  religious  supremacy  which  it  de- 
rived from  its  mosque. 

Enfeebled  by  divisions  and  subjected  to  such  diver- 
sity of  rule,  the  Mussulmans  were  no  longer  able  suc- 
cessfully to  resist  the  encroachments  of  the  Spaniards. 
The  Third  Epoch  of  their  history,  therefore,  will  pre- 
sent nothing  but  a  narrative  of  their  rapid  decline. 


CHAPTER  III.      • 

CONTAINING   AN    ACCOUNT    OF    THE    PRINCIPAL    KINGDOMS 
THAT  SPRANG  FROM  THE  RUINS  OF  THE  CALIPHATE. 

Extending  from  the  Commencement  of  the  Eleventh  to  the  Middle  of  the 
Thirteenth   Century. 

A.T  THE  commencement  of  the  eleventh  century, 
when  the  throne  of  Cordova  was  daily  stained 
by  the  blood  of  some  new  usurper,  the  gov- 
ernors of  the  different  cities,  as  has  been  already  re- 
marked, had  assumed  the  title  of  kings.    Toledo,  Sar- 
agossa,  Seville,  Valencia,  Lisbon,  Huesca,  and  several 
other  places  of  inferior  importance,  each  possessed  in- 
dependent sovereigns. 

The  history  of  these  numerous  kingdoms  would  be 
nearly  as  fatiguing  to  the  reader  as  to  the  writer.  It 
presents,  for  the  space  of  two  hundred  years,  nothing 
but  accounts  of  repeated  massacres,  of  fortresses  taken 
and  retaken,  of  pillages  and  seditions,  of  occasional  in- 
stances of  heroic  conduct,  but  far  more  numerous 
crimes.  Passing  rapidly  over  two  centuries  of  mis- 
fortunes, let  it  suffice  to  contemplate  the  termination 
of  these  petty  Moorish  sovereignties. 

Christian  Spain,  in  the  meantime,  presented  nearly 
the  same  picture  as  that  exhibited  by  the  portion  of 
the  Peninsula  still  in  possession  of  the  Mohammedans. 
The  kings  of  Leon,  Navarre,  Castile,  and  Aragon  were 
almost  always  relatives,  and  sometimes  brothers;  but 
they  were  not,  for  that  reason,  less  sanguinary  in  their 

45 


46  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

designs  toward  each  other.  Difference  of  religion  did 
not  prevent  them  from  uniting  with  the  Moors,  the 
more  effectually  to  oppress  other  Christians,  or  other 
Moors  with  whom  they  chanced  to  be  at  enmity. 
Thus,  in  a  battle  which  occurred  A.  D.  1010  between 
two  Mussulman  leaders,  there  were  found  among  the 
slain  a  count  of  Urgel  and  three  bishops  of  Catalonia. 
And  the  King  of  Leon,  Alphonso  V.,  gave  his  sister 
Theresa  in  marriage  to  Abdalla,  the  Moorish  king  of 
Toledo,  to  convert  him  into  an  ally  against  Castile. 

Among  the  Christians,  as  among  the  Moors,  crimes 
were  multiplied ;  civil  wars  of  both  a  local  and  general 
nature  at  the  same  time  distracted  Spain,  and  the  un- 
happy people  expiated  with  their  property  and  their 
lives  the  iniquities  of  their  rulers. 

While  thus  regarding  a  long  succession  of  melan- 
choly events,  it  is  agreeable  to  find  a  king  of  Toledo 
called  Almamon,  and  Benabad,  the  Mussulman  king 
of  Seville,  affording  an  asylum  al  their  courts,  the 
one  to  Alphonso,  the  young  king  of  Leon,  and  the 
other  to  the  unfortunate  Garciua,  king  of  Galicia,  both 
of  whom  had  been  driven  from  their  kingdoms  by  their 
brother  Sancho,  of  Castile,  A.  D.  1071.  Heg.  465.  San- 
cho  pursued  his  brothers  as  though  they  had  been  his 
most  implacable  enemies;  and  the  Moorish  monarchs, 
the  natural  enemies  6f  all  the  Christians,  received  these 
two  fugitive  princes  as  brothers.  Almamon,  especially, 
lavished  the  most  affectionate  attention  upon  the  un- 
fortunate Alphonso:  he  endeavored  to  entertain  him  at 
Toledo  with  such  varied  pleasures  as  should  banish 
regret  for  the  loss  of  a  throne :  he  gave  him  an  income, 
and,  in  short,  treated  the  prince  as  though  he  had  been 
a  near  and  beloved  relative.  When  the  death  of  the 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  47 

cruel  Sancho  (A.  D.  1072,  Heg.  466)  had  rendered 
Alphonso  king  of  Leon  and  Castile,  the  generous  Al- 
mamon,  who  now  had  the  person  of  the  king  of  his 
enemies  in  his  power,  accompanied  the  prince  to  the 
frontiers  of  his  kingdom,  loaded  him  with  presents  and 
caresses,  and,  at  parting,  offered  the  free  use  of  his 
troops  and  treasures  to  his  late  guest. 

While  Almamon  lived,  Alphonso  IV.  never  forgot 
his  obligations  to  his  benefactor.  He  maintained  peace 
with  him,  aided  him  in  his  campaigns  against  the  King 
oi  Seville,  and  even  entered  into  a  treaty  with  Hac- 
chem,  the  son  and  successor  of  his  ally.  But,  after  a 
brief  reign,  Hacchem  left  the  throne  of  Toledo  to  his 
youthful  brother  Jahiah.  That  prince  oppressed  the 
Christians,  who  were  very  numerous  in  his  city;  and 
they  secretly  implored  Alphonso  to  make  war  upon 
Jahiah.  The  memory  of  Almamon  long  caused  the 
Spanish  monarch  to  hesitate  in  relation  to  this  subject. 
Gratitude  impelled  him  not  to  listen  to  the  suggestions 
of  ambition  and  the  prayers  of  his  countrymen ;  but 
the  arguments  of  gratitude  proved  the  least  strong,  and 
Alphonso  encamped  before  Toledo. 

After  a  long  and  celebrated  siege,  to  which  several 
French  and  other  foreign  warriors  eagerly  hastened, 
Toledo  finally  capitulated,  A.  D.  1085,  Heg.  478. 

The  conqueror  allowed  the  sons  of  Almamon  to  go 
and  reign  at  Valencia,  and  engaged  by  an  oath  to  pre- 
serve the  mosques  from  destruction.  He  could  not, 
however,  prevent  the  Christians  from  speedily  vio- 
lating this  promise. 

Such  was  the  end  of  the  Moorish  kingdom  of  To- 
ledo. This  ancient  capital  of  the  Goths  had  belonged 
to  the  Arabs  three  hundred  and  eighty-two  years. 


48  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

Several  other  less  important  cities  now  submitted 
to  the  Christian  yoke.  The  kings  of  Aragon  and  Na- 
varre, and  the  Count  of  Barcelona,  incessantly  har- 
assed and  besieged  the  petty  Mussulman  princes  who 
still  remained  in  the  north  of  Spain.  The  attacks  of 
the  kings  of  Castile  and  Leon  afforded  sufficient  occu- 
pation for  those  of  the  south,  effectually  to  prevent 
their  rendering  any  assistance  to  their  brethren.  Above 
all,  the  Cid,  the  famous  Cid,  flew  from  one  part  of 
Spain  to  another,  at  the  head  of  the  invincible  band 
with  whom  his  fame  had  surrounded  him,  everywhere 
achieving  victories  for  the  Christians,  and  even  lending 
the  aid  of  his  arms  to  the  Moors  when  they  were  in- 
ternally divided,  but  always  securing  success  to  the 
party  he  favored. 

This  hero,  one  of  the  most  truly  admirable  of  those 
whom  history  has  celebrated,  since  in  his  character 
were  united  the  most  exalted  virtue  and  the  highest 
qualities  of  the  soldier;  this  simple  Castilian  cavalier, 
upon  whom  his  reputatibn  alone  bestowed  the  control 
of  armies,  became  master  of  several  cities,  assisted  the 
King  of  Aragon  to  sieze  upon  Huesca,  and  conquered 
the  kingdom  of  Valencia  without  any  other  assistance 
X  than  that  of  his  men-at-arms.  Equal  in  power  with  his 
sovereign,  of  whose  treatment  he  frequently  had  rea- 
son to  complain,  and  envied  and  persecuted  by  the 
jealous  courtiers,  the  Cid  never  forgot  for  a  moment 
that  he  was  the  subject  of  the  King  of  Castile.  Ban- 
ished from  court,  and  even  exiled  from  his  estates,  he 
hastened,  with  his  brave  companions,  to  attack  and 
conquer  the  Moors,  and  to  send  those  of  them  whom 
he  vanquished  to  render  homage  to  the  king  who  had 
deprived  him  of  his  rights. 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  49 

Being  soon  recalled  to  the  presence  of  Alphonso,  in 
consequence  of  the  king's  needing  his  military  aid, 
the  Cid  left  the  scenes  of  his  martial  triumphs,  and, 
without  demanding  reparation  for  the  injuries  he  had 
sustained,  returned  to  defend  his  persecutors;  ever 
ready,  while  in  disgrace,  to  forget  everything  in  the 
performance  of  his  duty  to  his  king,  and  equally  ready, 
when  enjoying  the  favor  of  the  sovereign,  to  displease 
him,  if  it  should  be  necessary  to  do  so,  by  advocating 
the  cause  of  truth  and  justice. 

While  the  prowess  of  the  Cid  maintained  the  con- 
test, the  Christians  had  the  advantage ;  but  a  few  years 
after  his  death,  which  occurred  in  the  year  1099,  and 
the  492d  of  the  Hegira,  the  Moors  of  Andalusia 
changed  masters,  and  became,  for  a  time,  more  formid- 
able than  ever  to  their  Spanish  foes. 

After  the  fall  of  Toledo,  Seville  had  increased  in 
power.  The  sovereigns  of  that  city  were  also  masters 
of  ancient  Cordova,  and  possessed,  in  addition,  Estre- 
madura  and  a  part  of  Portugal.  Benabad,  king  of  Se- 
ville, one  of  the  most  estimable  princes  of  his  age,  was 
now  the  only  one  of  its  enemies  capable  of  disturbing 
the  safety  of  Castile.  Alphonso  IV.,  desirous  of  ally- 
ing himself  with  this  powerful  Moor,  demanded  his 
daughter  in  marriage.  His  proposal  was  acceded  to, 
and  the  Castilian  monarch  received  several  towns  as 
the  dowry  of  the  Moorish  princess;  but  this  extraor- 
dinary union,  which  seemed  to  ensure  peace  between 
the  two  nations,  nevertheless  soon  became  either  the 
cause  or  the  pretext  of  renewed  contests. 

Africa,  after  having  been  separated  from  the  vast 
empire  of  the  Caliphs  of  the  East  by  the  Fatimite 
caliphs,  and  being,  during  three  centuries  of  civil  war, 

M.  of  H.— XXXIV— 4 


50  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

the  prey  of  a  succession  of  conquerors  more  ferocious 
and  sanguinary  than  the  lions  of  their  deserts,  was 
now  subjected  to  the  family  of  the  Almoravides,  a  pow- 
erful tribe  of  Egyptian  origin.  Joseph-ben-Tessefin, 
the  second  prince  of  this  dynasty,  founded  the  king- 
dom and  city  of  Morocco. 

Endowed  with  some  warlike  talents,  proud  of  his 
power,  and  burning  to  augment  it,  Joseph  regarded 
with  covetous  eye  the  beautiful  European  provinces 
which  had  formerly  been  conquered  by  the  Mussul- 
mans of  Africa. 

Some  historians  assert  that  the  King  of  Castile, 
Alphonso  IV.,  and  his  father-in-law  Benabad,  King 
of  Seville,  having  formed  the  project  of  dividing  Spain 
between  them,  committed  the  capital  error  of  summon- 
ing the  Moors  of  Africa  to  their  assistance  in  this 
grand  design.  But  others,  founding  their  assertions 
upon  more  plausible  reasoning,  say  that  the  petty  Mus- 
sulman kings,  who  were  the  neighbors  or  tributaries 
of  Benabad,  justly  alarmed  at  his  alliance  with  a  Chris- 
tian king,  solicited  the  support  of  the  Almoravide. 

But,  be  that  as  it  may,  the  ambitious  Joseph  eagerly 
availed  himself  of  the  fortunate  pretext  presented  by 
the  invitation  he  had  received,  and  crossed  the  Medi- 
terranean at  the  head  of  an  army.  He  hastened  to  at- 
tack Alphonso,  and  succeeded  in  overcoming  him  in  a 
battle  that  took  place  between  them,  A.  D.  1097,  Heg. 
490.  Then  turning  his  arms  against  Benabad,  Joseph 
took  Cordova,  besieged  Seville,  and  was  preparing  for 
the  assault  of  that  city,  when  the  virtuous  Benabad, 
sacrificing  his  crown  and  even  his  liberty  to  save  his 
subjects  from  the  horrors  that  threatened  them,  deliv- 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  51 

ered  himself  up,  together  with  his  family  of  a  hundred 
children,  to  the  disposal  of  the  Almoravide. 

The  barbarous  African,  dreading  the  influence  of  a 
monarch  whose  virtues  had  rendered  him  so  justly 
dear  to  his  people,  sent  him  to  end  his  days  in  an 
African  prison,  where  his  daughters  were  obliged  to 
support  their  father  and  brothers  by  the  labor  of  their 
hands. 

The  unfortunate  Benabad  lived  six  years  after  the 
commencement  of  his  imprisonment,  regretting  his  lost 
throne  only  for  the  sake  of  his  people,  and  beguiling  the 
period  of  his  protracted  leisure  by  the  composition  of 
several  poems  which  are  still  in  existence.  In  them  he 
attempts  to  console  his  daughters  under  their  heavy 
afflictions,  recalls  the  remembrance  of  his  vanished 
greatness,  and  offers  himself  as  a  warning  and  ex- 
ample to  kings  who  shall  presume  to  trust  too  confi- 
dently to  the  unchanging  continuance  of  the  favors  of 
fortune. 

Joseph-ben-Tessefin,  after  he  had  thus  become  mas- 
ter of  Seville  and  Cordova,  soon  succeeded  in  subju- 
gating the  other  petty  Mussulman  states;  and  the 
Moors,  united  under  a  single  monarch  as  powerful  as 
Joseph,  threatened  again  to  occupy  the  important  posi- 
tion they  had  sustained  during  the  supremacy  of  their 
caliphs.  The  Spanish  princes,  alarmed  at  this  pros- 
pect, suspended  their  individual  quarrels,  and  joined 
Alphonso  in  resisting  the  Africans. 

At  this  particular  juncture,  a  fanatical  love  of  relig- 
ion and  glory  induced  many  European  warriors  to  take 
up  arms  against  the  infidels.  Raymond  of  Bourgogne, 
and  his  kinsman  Henry,  both  French  princes  of  the 
blood,  Raymond  of  Saint-Gilles,  count  of  Toulouse, 


53  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

with  some  other  cavaliers  from  among  their  vassals, 
crossed  the  Pyrenees  with  their  retainers,  and  fought 
under  the  banners  of  the  King  of  Castile.  Thus  as- 
sisted, that  sovereign  put  the  Egyptian  commander  to 
flight,  and  compelled  him,  soon  afterward,  to  recross 
the  Mediterranean. 

The  grateful  Alphonso  gave  his  daughters  as  a 
recompense  to  the  distinguished  Frenchmen  who  had 
lent  him  the  aid  of  their  arms.  The  eldest,  Urraca, 
espoused  Raymond  of  Bourgogne,  and  their  son  after- 
ward inherited  the  kingdom  of  Castile.  Theresa  be- 
came the  wife  of  Henry,  and  brought  him  as  a  dowry 
all  the  land  he  had  thus  far  conquered  or  should  here- 
after conquer  in  Portugal :  from  thence  originated  that 
kingdom.  Elvira  was  given  to  Raymond,  count  of 
Toulouse,  who  carried  her  with  him  to  the  Holy  Land, 
where  he  gained  some  possessions  by  his  valor. 

Excited  by  these  illustrious  examples,  other  French 
cavaliers  resorted  soon  after  to  the  standard  of  the 
King  of  Aragon,  Alphonso  I.,  who  made  himself  mas- 
ter of  Saragossa,  and  for  ever  destroyed  that  ancient 
kingdom  of  the  Moors,  A.  D.  1118,  Heg.  512. 

The  son  of  Henry  of  Bourgogne,  Alphonso  I.,  king 
of  Portugal,  a  prince  renowned  for  his  bravery,  availed 
himself  of  the  presence  of  a  combined  fleet  of  English, 
Flemings,  and  Germans,  who  had  anchored  in  the  har- 
bor of  that  city  on  their  way  to  the  Holy  Land,  to  lay 
siege  to  Lisbon.  He  carried  that  place  by  assault,. in 
spite  of  its  great  strength,  and  made  it  the  capital  of 
his  kingdom,  A.  D.  1147,  Heg.  541. 

During  this  period  the  kings  of  Castile  and  Navarre 
were  extending  their  conquests  in  Andalusia. 

The  Moors  were  attacked  on  all  sides,  and  their 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  53 

cities  were  everywhere  compelled  to  surrender,  now 
that  they  were  no  longer  materially  aided  by  the  Al- 
moravides.  Those  African  princes  were  at  this  time 
sufficiently  occupied  at  home  in  opposing  some  new 
sectaries,  the  principal  of  whom,  under  pretext  of  rein- 
itiating the  people  in  a  knowledge  of  the  pure  doctrines 
of  Mohammed, ,  opened  for  themselves  a  path  to  the 
throne,  and,  after  many  struggles,  ended  by  effectually 
driving  the  family  of  the  Almoravides  from  its  posses- 
sion. The  new  conquerors,  becoming  by  these  means 
masters  of  Morocco  and  Fez,  destroyed,  according  to 
the  African  custom,  every  individual  of  the  supplanted 
race,  and  founded  a  new  dynasty,  which  islcnown  un- 
der the  name  of  the  Almohades,  A.  D.  1149,  Heg.  543. 

In  the  midst  of  these  divisions,  these  wars  and  com- 
bats, the  fine  arts  still  continued  to  be  cultivated  at 
Cordova.  And  though  they  were  no  longer  in  the 
flourishing  condition  in  which  they  were  maintained 
during  the  reigns  of  the  several  caliphs  who  bore  the 
cherished  name  of  Abderamus,  yet  the  schools  of  phi- 
losophy, poetry,  and  medicine  had  continued  to  exist. 
These  schools  produced,  in  the  twelfth  century,  several 
distinguished  men,  among  the  most  celebrated  of  whom 
were  the  learned  Abenzoar  and  the  famous  Averroes. 
The  former,  equally  profound  in  medicine,  pharmacy, 
and  surgery  lived,  it  is  said,  to  the  age  of  one  hundred 
and  thirty-five  years.  Some  estimable  works  which  he 
produced  are  still  extant.  Averroes  was  also  a  phy- 
sician, but  he  was  more  of  a  philosopher,  poet,  lawyer, 
and  commentator.  He  acquired  a  reputation  so  pro- 
found, that  passing  centuries  have  only  served  more 
firmly  to  establish  it.  The  disposition  made  by  this 
remarkable  man  of  his  time  during  the  different  peri- 


54 

ods  of  his  existence,  will  illustrate  his  mental  char- 
acter. In  his  youth  he  was  the  passionate  votary  of 
pleasure  and  poetry:  in  more  mature  age  he  burned  the 
verses  he  had  previously  composed,  studied  the  prin- 
ciples of  legislation  and  discharged  the  duties  of  a' 
judicial  officer:  having  advanced  still  farther  in  life,  he 
abandoned  these  occupations  for  the  pursuit  of  med- 
icine, in  which  he  attained  very  great  eminence:  at  last 
philosophy  alone  supplied  the  place  of  every  earlier 
taste,  and  wholly  engrossed  his  attention  for  the  re- 
mainder of  his  life;  It  was  Averroes  who  first  created 
among  the  Moors  a  taste  for  Greek  literature.  He 
translated  the  works  of  Aristotle  into  Arabic,  and 
wrote  commentaries  upon  them.  He  also  published 
several  other  works  upon  philosophy  and  medicine, 
and  possessed  the  united  glory  of  having  both  en- 
lightened and  benefited  mankind. 

As  Africa,  distracted  by  the  long  war  of  the  Almor- 
avides  and  the  Almohades,  was  unable  to  offer  any  op- 
position to  the  progress  of  the  Christians  in  Spain, 
these  last,  availing  themselves  of  this  condition  of 
affairs,  continued  to  extend  their  conquests  in  Andalu- 
sia. If  the  Spanish  princes  had  been  less  disunited,  and 
had  acted  in  concert  against  the  infidels,  they  would 
have  been  able  at  this  period  to  deprive  the  Mussul- 
mans of  their  entire  dominions  in  the  Peninsula.  But 
these  ever-contending  princes  had  no  sooner  taken  a 
Moorish  city  than  they  began  to  dispute  among  them- 
selves about  its  possession. 

The  newly-created  kingdom  of  Portugal,  estab- 
lished by  the  military  prowess  of  Alphonso,  was  soon 
at  war  with  that  of  Leon.  Aragon  and  Castile,  after 
many  bloody  quarrels,  united  in  a  league  against  Na- 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  55 

varre.  Sancho  VIII.,  the  sovereign  of  that  little  state, 
was  forced  to  resort  to  Africa  for  assistance,  and  im- 
plored the  aid  of  the  Almohades.  But  they,  being  but 
recently  established  on  the  throne  of  Morocco,  .were 
still  employed  in  exterminating  the  dismembered  frag- 
ments of  the  party  of  the  Almoravides,  and  could  not, 
in  spite  of  their  eager  desire  to  do  so,  establish  any 
claim  to  their  assumed  rights  in  Spain.  Nevertheless, 
two  kings  of  the  race  of  the  Almohades,  both  named 
Joseph,  passed  the  Mediterranean  more  than  once  with 
numerous  armies.  The  one  was  successfully  opposed 
by  the  Portuguese,  and  did  not  survive  his  final  defeat ; 
the  other  was  more  fortunate,  and  succeeded  in  van- 
quishing the  Castilians,  but  was  soon  after  obliged  to 
accept  a  truce  and  return  in  haste  to  Morocco,  to  which 
new  disturbances  recalled  him,  A.  D.  1195,  Heg.  591. 

But  these  useless  victories,  these  ill-sustained 
efforts,  did  not  permanently  disable  either  the  Mussul- 
mans or  the  Christians.  On  both  sides,  the  vanquished 
parties  soon  re-entered  the  field,  in  utter  neglect  of  the 
treaties  into  which  they  might  ever  so  recently  have 
entered.  The  sovereigns  of  Morocco,  though  regarded 
as  the  kings  of  Andalusia,  nevertheless  possessed  only 
a  precarious  authority  in  that  country,  which  was  al- 
ways disputed  when  they  were  absent,  and  acknowl- 
edged only  when  necessity  forced  the  Mussulman  in- 
habitants to  have  recourse  to  their  protection. 

At  last  Mohammed  El  Nazir,  the  fourth  prince  of 
the  dynasty  of  the  Almohades,  to  whom  the  Spaniards 
gave  the  name  of  the  Green,  from  the  color  of  his  tur- 
ban, finding  himself  in  quiet  possession  of  the  Moorish 
empire  of  Africa,  resolved  to  assemble  all  his  forces,  to 
lead  them  into  Spain,  and  to  renew  in  that  country  the 


56  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

ancient  conquests  of  Tarik  and  Moussa.  A  holy  war 
was  proclaimed,  A.  D.  1211,  Heg.  608,  and  an  innumer- 
able army  crowded  around  the  ensigns  of  Mohammed, 
left  the  shores  of  Africa  under  the  guidance  of  that 
monarch,  and  safely  arrived  in  Andalusia.  There  their 
numbers  were  nearly  doubled  by  the  Spanish  Moors, 
whom  hatred  to  the  very  name  of  Christian,  arising 
from  the  vivid  remembrance  of  accumulated  injuries, 
induced  to  join  the  bands  of  El  Nazir. 

The  sanguine  Mohammed  promised  an  easy  tri- 
umph to  his  followers,  together  with  the  certainty  of 
rendering  themselves  masters  of  all  that  their  ancestors 
had  formerly  possessed;  and,  burning  to  commence  the 
contest,  he  immediately  advanced  towards  Castile  at  the 
head  of  his  formidable  army,  which,  according  to  the 
reports  of  historians,  amounted  to  more  than  six  hun- 
dred thousand  men. 

The  king  of  Castile,  Alphonso  the  Noble,  informed 
of  the  warlike  preparations  of  the  King  of  Morocco, 
implored  the  assistance  of  the  Christian  princes  of 
Europe.  Pope  Innocent  III.  proclaimed  a  crusade  and 
granted  indulgences  most  lavishly.  Rodrique,  arch- 
bishop of  Toledo,  made  in  person  a  voyage  to  Rome, 
to  solicit  the  aid  of  the  sovereign  pontiff ;  and,  return- 
ing homeward  through  France,  preached  to  the  people 
on  his  route,  and  induced  many  cavaliers  to  proceed  at 
the  head  of  bands  of  recruits  to  Spain,  and  join  the 
opponents  of  the  Mussulmans. 

The  general  rendezvous  was  at  Toledo,  at  which 
point  there  were  soon  coHected  more  than  sixty  thou- 
sand crusaders  from  Italy  and  France,  who  united  them- 
selves with  the  soldiers  of  Castile.  The  King  of  Ara- 
gon,  Peter  II.,  the  same  who  afterward  perished  in  the 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  57 

war  of  the  Albigense,  led  his  valiant  army  to  the  place 
of  meeting1,  and  Sancho  VIII.,  king  of  Navarre,  was 
not  backward  in  presenting  himself  at  the  head  of  his 
brave  subjects.  The  Portuguese  had  recently  lost  their 
king,  but  they  despatched  their  best  warriors  to  To- 
ledo. In  short,  all  Spain  flew  to  arms.  There  was  gen- 
eral union  for  the  promotion  of  mutual  safety;  for 
never,  since  the  time  of  King  Rodrique,  had  the  Chris- 
tians been  placed  in  such  imminent  danger. 

It  was  at  the  foot  of  the  Sierra  Morena,  at  a  place 
named  Las  Navas  ^de  Toloza,  that  the  three  Spanish 
princes  encountered  the  Moors,  A.  D.  1212,  Heg.  609. 

Mohammed  El  Nazir  had  taken  possession  of  the 
mountain  gorges  through  which  it  had  been  the  inten- 
tion of  the  Christians  to  approach  his  camp.  The  adroit 
African  thus  designed,  either  to  force  his  opponents  to 
turn  back,  which  would  expose  them  to  the  danger  of 
a  failure  of  provisions,  or  to  overwhelm  them  in  the 
pass  if  they  should  attempt  to  enter  it.  Upon  discov- 
ering this  circumstance,  a  council  was  called  by  the 
embarrassed  Christian  leaders.  Alphonso  was  desir- 
ous of  attempting  the  passage,  but  the  kings  of  Navarre 
and  Aragon  advised  a  retreat.  In  the  midst  of  this 
dilemma,  a  shepherd  presented  himself  before  them, 
and  offered  to  conduct  them  through  a  defile  of  the 
mountain,  with  which  he  was  familiar.  This  proposal, 
which  was  the  salvation  of  their  army,  was  eagerly 
accepted,  and  the  shepherd  guided  the  Catholic  sover- 
eigns through  difficult  paths  and  across  rocks  and  tor- 
rents, until,  with  their  followers,  they  finally  succeeded 
in  attaining  the  summit  of  the  mountain. 

There,  suddenly  presenting  themselves  before  the 
eyes  of  the  astonished  Moors,  they  were  engaged  for 


58  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

the  space  of  two  days  in  preparing  themselves  for  the 
conflict,  by  prayer,  confession,  and  the  solemn  recep- 
tion of  the  holy  sacrament.  Their  leaders  set  an  ex- 
ample to  the  soldiers  in  this  zealous  devotion ;  and  the 
prelates  and  ecclesiastics,  of  whom  there  were  a  great 
number  in  the  camp,  after  having  absolved  these  de- 
vout warriors,  prepared  to  accompany  them  into  the 
midst  of  the  conflict. 

Upon  the  third  day,  the  sixteenth  of  July,  in  the 
year  twelve  hundred  and  twelve,  the  Christian  army 
was  drawn  up  in  battle  array.  The  troops  were  formed 
into  three  divisions,  each  commanded  by  a  king.  Al- 
phonso  was  in  the  center,  at  the  head  of  his  Castilians 
and  the  chevaliers  of  the  newly-instituted  orders  of 
Saint  James  and  Calatrava;  Rodrique,  archbishop  of 
Toledo,  the  eyewitness  and  historian  of  this  great  bat- 
tle, advanced  by  the  side  of  Alphonso,  preceded  by  a 
large  cross,  the  principal  ensign  of  the  army ;  Sancho 
and  his  Navarrois  formed  the  right,  while  Peter  and 
his  subjects  occupied  the  left.  The  French  crusaders, 
now  reduced  to  a  small  number  by  the  desertion  of 
many  of  their  companions,  who  had  been  unable  to  en- 
dure the  scorching  heat  of  the  climate,  marched  in  the 
van  of  the  other  troops,  under  the  command  of  Arnault, 
archbishop  of  Narbonne. 

Thus  disposed,  the  Christians  descended  towards 
the  valley  which  separated  them  from  their  enemies. 

The  Moors,  according  to  their  ancient  custom, 
everywhere  displayed  their  innumerable  soldiers,  with- 
out order  or  arrangement.  An  admirable  cavalry,  to 
the  number  of  a  hundred  thousand  men,  composed  their 
principal  strength  :  the  rest  of  their  army  was  made  up 
of  a  crowd  of  ill-armed  and  imperfectly  trained  foot- 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  59 

soldiers.  Mohammed,  stationed  on  a  height,  from 
which  he  could  command  a  view  of  his  whole  army, 
was  encompassed  by  a  defence  made  of  chains  of  iron, 
guarded  by  the  choicest  of  his  cavaliers  on  foot.  Stand- 
ing in  the  midst  of  this  enclosure,  with  the  Koran  in 
one  hand  and  an  unsheathed  sabre  in  the  other,  the 
Saracen  commander  was  visible  to  all  his  troops,  of 
whom  the  bravest  squadrons  occupied  the  four  sides 
of  the  hill. 

The  Castilians  directed  their  first  efforts  towards 
this  elevation.  At  first  they  drove  back  the  Moors, 
but,  repulsed  in  their  turn,  they  recoiled  in  disorder 
and  began  to  retreat.  Alphonso  flew  here  and  there, 
attempting  to  rally  their  broken  ranks.  "Archbishop," 
said  he  to  the  prelate  wKb  everywhere  accompanied 
him,  preceded  by  the  grand  standard  of  the  Cross, 
"Archbishop,  here  are  we  destined  to  die!"  "Not  so, 
sire,"  replied  the  ecclesiastic ;  "we  are  destined  here  to 
live  and  conquer!"  At  that  moment  the  brave  canon 
who  carried  the  chief  ensign  threw  himself  with  it  into 
the  midst  of  the  infidels ;  the  prelate  and  the  king  fol- 
lowed him,  and  the  Castiliari  soldiers  rushed  forward 
to  protect  their  sovereign  and  their  sacred  standard. 
The  already  victorious  kings  of  Aragon  and  Navarre 
now  advanced  at  the  head  of  their  wings  to  unite  in 
the  attack  upon  the  height.  The  Moors  were  assaulted 
at  all  points :  they  bravely  resisted  their  opponents ; 
but  the  Christians  crowded  upon  them — the  Ara- 
gonais,  the  Navarrois,  and  the  Castilians  endeavoring 
mutually  to  surpass  each  other  in  courage  and  daring. 
The  brave  King  of  Navarre,  making  a  path  for  himself 
through  the  midst  of  its  defenders,  reached  the  en- 
closure, and  struck  and  broke  the 'chains  by  which  the 


60  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

Moorish  commander  was  surrounded.  Mohammed 
took  to  flight  on  beholding  this  catastrophe ;  and  his 
soldiers,  no.longer  beholding  their  king,  lost  both  hope 
and  courage.  They  gave  way  in  all  directions,  and 
fled  before  the  Christians.  Thousands  of  the  Mussul- 
mans fell  beneath  the  weapons  of  their  pursuers,  while 
the  Archbishop  of  Toledo,  with  the  other  ecclesiastics, 
surrounding  the  victorious  sovereigns,  chanted  a  Te 
Dcum  on  the  field  of  battle. 

Thus  was  gained  the  famous  battle  of  Toloza,  of 
which  some  details  have  been  given  in  consequence 
of  its  great  importance,  and  in  illustration  of  the  mil- 
itary tactics  of  the  Moors.  With  them  the  arts  of  war 
consisted  solely  in  mingling  with  the  enemy,  and 
fighting,  each  one  for  himself,  until  either  the  strong- 
est or  the  bravest  of  the  two  parties  remained  masters 
of  the  field. 

The  Spaniards  possessed  but  little  more  military 
skill  than  their  Moslem  neighbors;  but  their  infantry, 
at  least,  could  attack  and  resist  in  mass,  while  the  dis- 
cipline of  that  of  the  Saracens  amounted  to  scarcely 
anything.  On  the  other  hand,  again,  the  cavalry  of 
the  Moors  was  admirably  trained.  The  cavaliers  who 
composed  it  belonged  to  the  principal  families  in  the 
kingdom,  and  possessed  excellent  horses,  in  the  art  of 
managing  which  they  had  been  trained  from  childhood. 
Their  mode  of  combat  was  to  rush  forward  with  the 
rapidity  of  light,  strike  with  the  sabre  or  the  lance, 
fly  away  as  quickly,  and  then  wheel  suddenly  and  re- 
turn again  to  the  encounter.  Thus  they  often  suc- 
ceeded in  recalling  victory  to  their  standard  when  she 
seemed  just  about  to  desert  them.  The  Christians, 
covered  as  they  were  with  iron,  had  in  some  respects 


61 

the  advantage  of  these  knights,  whose  persons  were 
protected  only  by  a  breastplate  and  headpiece  of  steel. 
The  Moorish  foot-soldiers  were  nearly  naked,  and 
armed  only  with  a  wretched  pike.  It  is  easy  to  per- 
ceive that,  when  involved  in  the  melee,  and,  above  all, 
during  a  route,  vast  numbers  of  them  must  have  per- 
ished. This,  too,  renders  less  incredible  the  seemingly 
extravagant  accounts  given  by  historians  of  their 
losses  in  the  field.  They  assert,  for  example,  that,  at 
the  battle  of  Toloza,  the  Christians  killed  two  hun- 
dred thousand  Moors,  while  they  lost  themselves  but 
fifteen  hundred  soldiers.  Even  when  these  assertions 
are  estimated  at  their  true  value,  it  remains  certain 
that  the  infidels  sustained  an  immense  loss;  and  this 
important  defeat,  which  is  still  celebrated  yearly  at 
Toledo  by  a  solemn  fete,  long  deprived  the  kings  of 
Morocco  of  all  hope  of  subjugating  the  Spaniards. 

The  victory  of  Toloza  was  followed  by  more  fatal 
consequences  to  the  unfortunate  Mohammed  than  to 
the  Moors  of  Andalusia;  for  the  latter  retired  to  their 
•cities,  defended  them  by  means  of  the  remains  of  the 
African  army,  and  successfully  resisted  the  Spanish 
princes,  who  succeeded  in  taking  but  few  of  their 
strong  places,  and,  speedily  dissolving  their  league, 
separated  for  their  respective  kingdoms.  But  Mo- 
hammed, despised  by  his  subjects  after  his  defeat,  and 
assailed  by  the  treachery  of  his  nearest  relations,  lost 
all  authority  in  Spain,  and  beheld  the  principal  Moors, 
whom  he  had  now  no  power  to  control,  again  forming 
little  states,  the  independence  of  which  they  were  pre- 
pared to  assert  by  force  of  arms.  The  discomfited  El 
Nazir  consequently  returned  to  Africa,  where  he  soon 
after  died  of  chagrin. 


62  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

With  Mohammed  the  Green  vanished  the  good 
fortune  of  the  Almohades.  The  princes  of  that  house, 
who  followed  El  Nazir  in  rapid  succession,  purchased 
their  royal  prerogatives  at  the  expense  of  continual 
unhappiness  and  danger,  and  were  finally  driven  from 
the  throne.  The  empire  of  Morocco  was  then  divided, 
and  three  new  dynasties  were  established ;  that  of  Fez, 
of  Tunis,  and  of  Tremecen.  These  three  powerful  and 
rival  sovereignties  greatly  multiplied  the  conflicts, 
crimes,  and  atrocities,  the  narration  of  which  alone 
constitutes  the  history  of  Africa. 

About  this  period  some  dissensions  arose  in  Cas- 
tile, which,  together  with  the  part  assumed  by  the 
King  of  Aragon  in  the  war  of  the  Albigense  in  France, 
allowed  the  Moors  time  to  breathe.  The  Moslems 
were  still  masters  of  the  kingdoms  of  Valencia,  Mur- 
cia,  Grenada,  and  Andalusia,  with  part  of  Algarva  and 
the  Balearic  Isles,  which  last,  until  that  time,  had  con- 
tinued to  be  but  little  known  to  the  Christians  of  the 
Continent. 

These  states  were  divided  between  several  sover- 
eigns, the  principal  of  whom  was  Benhoud,  a  descend- 
ant of  the  ancient  kings  of  Saragossa,  a  sagacious 
monarch  and  a  great  commander,  who  by  his  genius 
and  courage  had  obtained  dominion  over  all  the  south- 
eastern part  of  Spain.  Next  to  Benhoud  in  rank,  the 
most  important  of  these  Mohammedan  princes  were 
the  kings  of  Seville  and  Valentia.  The  barbarian  who 
reigned  at  Majorca  was  a  mere  piratical  chief,  whose 
enmity  was  formidable  only  to  the  inhabitants  of  the 
neighboring  coast  of  Catalonia. 

Such  was  the  condition  of  Moorish  Spain,  when 
two  young  heroes  seated  themselves,  nearly  at  the 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  63 

same  time,  on  the  thrones  of  the  two  principal  Chris- 
tian states ;  and,  after  having  allayed  the  commotions 
created  during  the  period  of  their  minority,  directed 
their  concentrated  efforts  against  the  Mussulmans, 
A.  D.  1224,  Heg.  621. 

These  princes,  who  were  mutually  desirous  to  emu- 
late each  other  in  fame,  but  were  never  rivals  in  inter- 
est, both  consecrated  their  lives  to  the  extirpation  of 
the  inflexible  enemies  of  their  native  land.  One  of 
these  sovereigns  was  Jacques  I.,  king  of  Aragon  (a  son 
of  the  Peter  of  Aragon  who  distinguished  himself  on 
the  field  of  Toloza),  who  united  to  the  courage,  grace, 
and  energy  of  his  father,  a  greater  degree  of  genius 
and  success  than  fell  to  the  lot  of  that  sovereign.  The 
other  was  Ferdinand  III.,  king  of  Castile  and  Leon,  a 
discerning,  courageous,  and  enterprising  monarch, 
whom  the  Romish  Church  has  numbered  with  its 
saints,  and  history  ranks  among  its  great  men. 

This  prince  was  the  nephew  of  Blanche  of  Castile, 
queen  of  France,  and  cousin-german  of  St.  Lewis, 
whom  he  nearly  resembled  in  his  piety,  his  bravery, 
and  the  wise  laws  he  framed  for  the  benefit  of  his  sub- 
jects. 

Ferdinand  carried  his  arms  first  into  Andalusia. 
When  he  entered  the  territories  of  the  infidels,  he  re- 
ceived the  homage  of  several  Moorish  princes,  who 
came  to  acknowledge  themselves  his  vassals.  As  he 
proceeded,  he  seized  upon  a  great  number  of  places, 
and,  among  others,  the  town  of  Alhambra,  whose 
frightened  inhabitants  retired  to  Grenada,  and  estab- 
lished themselves  in  a  portion  of  that  city,  which  thus 
obtained  the  name  by  which  it  was  afterward  so  much 
celebrated. 


64  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

Jacques  of  Aragon,  on  his  part,  set  sail  with  an 
army  for  the  Balearic  Isles.  Though  impeded  in  his 
progress  by  contrary  winds,  he  succeeded  at  last  in 
reaching  Majorca,  on  the  shore  of  which  island  he  de- 
feated the  Moorish  force  that  attempted  to  oppose  his 
landing,  and  then  marched  towards  their  capital  and 
laid  siege  to  it. 

The  chivalrous  Jacques,  who,  when  danger  was  to 
be  encountered,  always  took  precedence  of  even  his 
bravest  officers  and  most  daring  soldiers,  was,  as 
usual,  the  first  to  mount  the  walls  in  the  assault  upon 
this  city.  It  was  carried,  notwithstanding  its  great 
strength,  the  Mussulman  king  driven  from  the  throne, 
and  this  new  crown  permanently  incorporated  with 
that  of  Aragon,  A.  D.  1229,  Heg.  627. 

Jacques  had  long  been  meditating  a  most  important 
conquest.  Valencia,  after  the  death  of  the  Cid,  had 
again  fallen  into  the  hands  of  the  Moors.  This  beauti- 
ful and  fertile  province,  where  nature  seemed  to. de- 
light herself  by  covering  anew  with  fruit  and  flowers 
the  soil  that  man  had  so  often  deluged  with  blood,  was 
now  under  the  dominion  of  Zeith,  a  brother  of  Mo- 
hammed El  Nazir,  the  African  king  who  was  van- 
quished at  Toloza  by  the  Christians.  A  powerful  fac- 
tion, inimical  to  the  power  of  Zeith,  wished  to  place 
upon  the  throne  a  prince  named  Zean.  The  two  com- 
petitors appealed  to  arms  to  decide  their  respective 
claims.  The  King  of  Aragon  espoused  the  cause  of 
Zeith,  and,  under  pretext  of  marching  to  his  assist- 
ance, advanced  into  the  kingdom  of  Valencia,  several 
times  defeated  Zean,  seized  upon  his  strong  places, 
and,  with  the  active  intrepedity  that  rendered  him  so 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  6R 

formidable  a  foe,  invested  the  capital  of  his  enemy,, 
A.  D.  1234,  Heg.  632. 

Thus  pressed  by  the  sovereign  of  Aragon,  Zean  im- 
plored the  aid  of  Benhoud,  the  most  puissant  of  the: 
kings  of  Andalusia.  But  Benhoud  was  at  this  time 
occupied  in  resisting  the  encroachments  of  Ferdinand., 
The  Castilians,  under  the  conduct  of  that  valiant 
prince,  had  made  new  progress  against  the  Moors. 
After  possessing  themselves  of  a  great  number  of 
other  cities,  they  had  now  laid  siege  to  ancient  Cor- 
dova. 

Benhoud  had  been  often  vanquished,  but  always 
retained  the  affections  of  a  people  who  regarded  him, 
as  their  last  support.  He  had  again  collected  an  army,, 
and,  though  possessed  with  an  equally  earnest  desire 
to  relieve  both  Cordova  and  Valencia,  was  about  ta 
march  toward  the  latter,  from  a  belief  that  he  was- 
most  likely  to  be  there  successful,  when  his  life  was. 
treacherously  terminated  by  one  of  his  lieutenants. 

The  Catholic  kings  were  by  this  means  delivered 
from  the  opposition  of  the  only  man  who  was  capable 
of  impeding  the  accomplishment  of  their  wishes. 

The  death  of  Benhoud  deprived  the  inhabitants  of 
Cordova  of  all  courage  and  hope.  Until  then  they  had' 
defended  themselves  with  equal  courage  and  con- 
stancy; but  they  offered  to  capitulate  upon  receivimg 
intelligence  of  this  disastrous  event. 

The  Christians  made  the  most  rigorous  use  of  their 
victory,  granting  only  life  and  liberty  of  departure  t» 
the  unfortunate  disciples  of  the  Prophet.  An  innumer- 
able host  of  these  wretched  people  came  forth  from 
their  former  homes,  weeping,  and  despoiled  of  all  their 
possessions.  Slowly  they  left  the  superb  city  which 

M.  of  H.— XXXIV— 6 


66  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

had  been  for  more  than  five  hundred  and  twenty  years 
the  principal  seat  of  their  national  greatness,  their 
luxurious  magnificence,  their  cherished  religion,  and 
their  favorite  literature  and  fine  arts. 

Often  did  these  desolate  exiles  pause  on  their  way, 
and  turn  their  despairing  eyes  once  again  towards  the 
towering  palaces,  the  splendid  temples,  the  beautiful 
gardens,  that  five  centuries  of  lavish  expense  and  toil- 
some effort  had  served  to  adorn  and  perfect,  only  to 
become  the  spoil  of  the  enemies  of  their  faith  and  their 
race. 

The  Catholic  soldiers  who  were  now  the  occupants 
of  these  enchanting  abodes,  were  so  far  from  appre- 
ciating their  loveliness  and  value,  that  they  preferred 
rather  to  destroy  than  inhabit  them ;  and  Ferdinand 
soon  found  himself  the  possessor  of  a  deserted  city. 
He  was  therefore  compelled  to  attract  inhabitants  to 
Cordova  from  other  parts  of  his  dominions,  by  the 
offer  of  extraordinary  immunities.  But,  notwithstand- 
ing the  privileges  thus  accorded  them,  the  Spaniards 
murmured  at  leaving  their  arid  rocks  and  barren  fields, 
to  dwell  in  the  palaces  of  caliphs  and  amid  nature's 
most  luxuriant  scenes. 

The  grand  .mosque  of  Abderamus  was  converted 
into  a  cathedral,  and  Cordova  became  the  residence  of 
a  bishop  and  canons,  but  it  was  never  restored  to  the 
faintest  shadow  of  its  former  splendor. 

Not  long  after  the  fall  of  Cordova,  Valencia  also 
submitted  to  the  Christian  yoke.  Zean,  besides  being 
assailed  externally  by  the  force  of  the  intrepid  Jacques, 
had,  in  addition,  to  oppose  within  his  walls  the  faction 
of  Zeith,  whom  he  had  dethroned.  The  king  of  Tunis, 
too,  had  been  unsuccessful  in  an  attempt  to  send  a  fleet 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  67 

to  the  relief  of  Valencia :  it  at  once  took  to  flight  on  the 
appearance  of  the  vessels  of  Jacques.  Abandoned  by 
the  whole  world,  disheartened  by  the  fate  of  Cordova, 
and  betrayed  by  the  party  of  his  competitor,  Zean 
offered  to  become  the  vassal  of  the  crown  of  Aragon, 
and  to  pay  a  tribute  in  acknowledgment  of  his  vassal- 
age ;  but  the  Christian  monarch  was  inflexible,  and 
would  accede  to  no  terms  that  did  not  include  a  stipu- 
lation to  surrender  the  city. 

Fifty  thousand  Moors,  bearing  their  treasures  with 
them,  accompanied  the  departure  of  their  sovereign 
from  Valencia.  Jacques  had  pledged  his  royal  word 
to  protect  the  rich  booty  which  they  so  highly  valued 
from  the  cupidity  of  his  soldiers,  and  he  faithfully  per- 
formed his  promise. 

After  the  destruction  of  the  two  powerful  king- 
doms of  Andalusia  and  Valencia,  there  seemed  to  exist 
no  Moorish  power  capable  of  arresting  the  progress  of 
the  Spanish  Arms.  That  of  Seville,  which  alone  re- 
mained, was  already  menaced  by  the  victorious  Ferdi- 
nand. But,  just  at  this  period,  a  new  state  rose  sud- 
denly into  importance,  which  maintained  a  high  de- 
gree of  celebrity  for  two  hundred  years,  and  long  pre- 
vented the  final  ruin  of  the  Moors. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE   KINGS   OF  GRENADA. 

Extending  from  the  Middle  of  the  Thirteenth  Century  to  the  period  of  tke 

Total  Expulsion  of  the  Moors  from  Spain,  A.  D.  1492. 

» 

THE  unprecedented  success  of  the  Spaniards, 
and,  above  all,  the  loss  of  Cordova,  spread 
consternation  among  the  Moors.  That  ardent 
and  superstitious  people,  who  were  ever  equally  ready 
to  cherish  delusive  hopes,  and  to  yield  to  despondency 
when  those  anticipations  were  disappointed,  looked 
upon  their  empire  as  ruined  the  moment  the  Christian 
cross  surmounted  the  pinnacle  of  their  grand  mosque, 
•and  the  banner  of  Castile  waved  over  the  walls  of  their 
ancient  capital — those  walls  on  which  the  standards  of 
the  Caliphs  of  the  West  and  of  their  Prophet  had  for 
centuries  floated  in  triumph. 

Notwithstanding  this  national  dejection,  however, 
Seville,  Grenada,  Murcia,  and  the  kingdom  of  Algarva 
•still  belonged  to  the  Mussulmans.  They  possessed  all 
the  seaports,  and  the  whole  maritime  coast  of  the  south 
of  Spain.  Their  enormous  population,  and  great 
national  wealth  and  industry,  also  secured  to  them  im- 
mense resources ;  but  Cordova,  the  holy  city,  the  rival 
of  Mecca  in  the  West — Cordova  was  in  the  possession 
of  the  Christians,  and  the  Moors  believed  that  all  was 
lost. 

But  the  hopes  of  these  despairing  followers  of  Is- 
lam were  rekindled  by  the  almost  magical  influence  of 
a  single  individual,  a  scion  of  the  tribe  of  the  Alhamars, 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  6* 

named  Mohammed  Aboussaid,  who  came  originally 
from  the  celebrated  Arabian  city  of  Couffa. 

Several  historians,  who  speak  of  Mohammed  under 
the  title  of  Mohammed  Alhamar,  assure  us  that  he  com- 
menced his  career  as  a  simple  shepherd,  and  that,  hav- 
ing afterward  borne  arms,  he  aspired  to  the  attainment 
of  royal  power  in  consequence  of  his  martial  exploits- 
Such  an  incident  is  not  extraordinary  among  the  Arabs,, 
where  all  who  are  not  descended  either  from  the  family 
of  the  Prophet  or  from  the  royal  race,  possessing  none 
of  the  privileges  of  birth,  are  esteemed  solely  according; 
to  their  personal  merits. 

But,  be  that  as  it  may,  Mohammed  Aboussaid  pos- 
sessed sufficient  intellectual  powers  to  reanimate  the 
expiring  courage  of  the  vanquished  Moslems.  He  as- 
sembled an  army  in  the  city  of  Arjona,  and,  well  know- 
ing the  peculiar  character  of  the  nation  that  he  wished 
to  control,  proceeded  to  gain  over  to  his  interests  a 
santon,  a  species  of  religious  character  highly  venerated 
among  the  Moors.  This  oracular  individual  publicly- 
predicted  to  the  people  of  Algarva  that  Mohammed 
Alhamar  was'  destined  speedily  to  become  their  king. 
Accordingly,  he  was  soon  proclaimed  by  the  inhabi- 
tants, and  several  other  cities  followed  the  example 
thus  set  them. 

Mohammed  now  filled  the  place  of  Benhoud,  to 
whom  he  possessed  similar  talents  for  government; 
and,  feeling  the  necessity  of  selecting  a  city  to  replace 
Cordova  in  the  affections  of  the  Moors,  to  become  the 
sacred  asylum  of  their  religion,  and  the  centering- 
point  for  their  military  strength,  he  founded  a  new 
kingdom,  and  made  the  city  of  Grenada  its  capital,. 
A.  D.  1236,  Heg.  634. 


70  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

This  city,  powerful  from  the  remotest  times,  and 
supposed  to  be  the  ancient  Illiberis  of  the  Romans, 
was  built  upon  two  hills,  not  far  distant  from  the 
Sierra  Nevada,  a  chain  of  mountains  whose  summits 
are  covered  with  perpetual  snow.  The  town  was 
traversed  by  the  river  Darra,  and  the  waters  of. the 
Xenil  bathed  its  walls.  Each  of  the  two  hills  was 
crowned  by  a  fortress ;  on  the  one  was  that  of  the  Al- 
hambra,  and  on  the  other  that  of  the  Albayzin.  These 
strongholds  were  either  of  them  sufficient  in  extent  to 
accommodate  forty  thousand  men  within  their  walls. 
The  fugitives  from  the  city  of  Alhambra,  as  has 
already  been  stated,  had  given  the  name  of  their  former 
home  to  the  new  quarters  that  they  peopled ;  and  the 
Moors  who  had  been  driven  from  Baeca  when  Ferdi- 
nand III.  became  master  of  that  place,  had  established 
themselves,  in  a  similar  manner,  in  the  quarter  of  the 
Albayzin. 

This  city  had  also  received  many  exiles  from  Valen- 
cia, Cordova,  and  other  places  which  the  Mussulmans 
had  deserted. 

With  a  population  whose  numbers  were  daily  aug- 
mented, Grenada,  at  the  period  of  which  we  now  speak, 
was  more  than  three  leagues  in  circuit,  surrounded  by 
impregnable  ramparts,  defended  by  many  strong 
towers,  and  by  a  brave  and  numerous  people,  whose 
military  prowess  seemed  to  ensure  their  safety  and 
independence. 

Various  were  the  advantages  that  combined  in  giv- 
ing to  Grenada  the  supremacy  she  had  assumed.  Her 
location  was  one  of  the  most  agreeable  and  beautiful 
in  the  world,  and  rendered  her  mistress  of  a  country 
on  which  nature  had  lavished  her  choicest  gifts.  The 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  M 

famous  vega,  or  plain,  by  which  the  city  was  sur- 
rounded, was  thirty  leagues  in  length  and  eight  in 
breadth.  It  was  terminated  on  the  north  by  the 
mountains  of  Elvira  and  the  Sierra  Nevada,  and  en- 
closed on  the  remaining  sides  by  hills  clothed  with  the 
verdure  of  the  olive,  the  mulberry,  the  lemon,  and  the 
vine. 

This  enchanting  plain  was  watered  by  five  small 
rivers  and  an  infinite  number  of  gushing  springs, 
whose  streams  wandered  in  graceful  meanderings 
through  meadows  of  perpetual  verdure,  through  for- 
ests of  oak  and  plantations  of  grain,  flax,  and  sugar- 
cane, or  burst  forth  in  the  midst  of  gardens,  and  or- 
chards, and  orange-groves. 

All  the  rich,  and  beautiful,  and  varied  productions 
of  the  soil  required  but  little  attention  in  their  culture. 
The  earth  was  continually  covered  with  vegetation,  in 
myriads  of  changing  forms,  and  never  knew  the  repose 
of  winter. 

During  the  heat  of  summer,  the  mountain  breezes 
spread  a  refreshing  coolness  through  the  air  of  this 
lovely  vega,  and  preserved  the  early  brilliancy  and 
beauty  of  the  flowers,  that  were  ever  mingled  in  de- 
lightful confusion  with  the  varied  fruits  of  a  tropical 
region. 

On  this  celebrated  plain,  whose  charms  no  descrip- 
tion can  embellish ;  on  this  enchanting  vega,  where 
nature  seemed  to  have  exhausted  her  efforts  in  lavish- 
ing all  that  the  heart  of  man  could  desire  or  his  imag- 
ination conceive,  more  blood  has  been  shed  than  on 
any  other  spot  in  the  world.  There — where,  during 
two  centuries  of  unceasing  warfare,  whose  baleful 
effects  extended  from  generation  to  generation,  from 


72  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

«ity  to  city,  and  from  man  to  man — there  does  not 
exist  a  single  isolated  portion  of  earth  where  the  trees 
have  not  been  wantonly  destroyed,  the  villages  re- 
duced to  ashes,  and  the  desolated  fields  strewn  with 
the  mingled  corses  of  slaughtered  Moors  and  Chris- 
tians. 

Independent  of  this  vega,  which  was  of  such  inesti- 
mable value  to  Grenada,  fourteen  great  cities  and  more 
•than  one  hundred  of  smaller  size,  together  with  a  pro- 
digious number  of  towns,  were  embraced  within  the 
'boundaries  of  this  fine  kingdom. 

The  extent  of  Grenada,  from  Gibraltar  (which  was 
mot  taken  by  the  Christians  until  long  after  this  period) 
to  the  city  of  Lorca,  was  more  than  eighty  leagues.  It 
•was  thirty  leagues  in  breadth  from  Cambril  to  the 
^Mediterranean. 

The  mountains  by  which  the  kingdom  of  Grenada 
•was  intersected,  produced  gold,  silver,  granite,  ame- 
Tthysts,  and  various  kinds  of  marble. 

Among  these  mountains,  those  of  the  Alpuxaries 
alone  formed  a  province,  and  yielded  the  monarch  of 
^Grenada  more  precious  treasures  than  their  mines 
could  furnish — active  and  athletic  men,  who  became 
either  hardy  and  industrious  husbandmen,  or  faithful 
and  indefatigable  soldiers. 

In  addition  to  all  this,  the  ports  of  Almeria,  Malaga, 
and  Algeziras  received  into  their  harbors  the  vessels 
of  both  Europe  and  Africa,  and  became  places  of  de- 
posite  for  the  commerce  of  the  Mediterranean  and  the 
Atlantic. 

Such,  at  its  birth,  was  the  kingdom  of  Grenada, 
and  such  it  long  continued.  Mohammed  Alhamar, 
from  the  period  of  its  establishment,  made  useless 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  73 

•efforts  to  unite  all  the  remaining  dominions  of  the 
Mussulmans  of  Spain  under  one  scepter,  as  the  only 
means  of  successfully  resisting  the  encroachments  of 
the  Christians.  But  the  little  kingdom  of  Murcia  and 
that  of  Algarva  were  each  governed  by  separate 
princes,  who  persisted  in  maintaining  their  independ- 
ence. This  was  the  cause  of  their  ruin,  for  they  thus 
became  more  readily  the  prey  of  the  Spaniards. 

Alhamar  signalized  the  commencement  of  his  reign 
t>y  military  achievements.  In  the  year  1242,  Heg.  640, 
he  gained  some  important  advantages  over  the  troops 
of  Ferdinand.  But  repeated  revolts  in  the  capital  and 
disturbances  in  other  parts  of  his  new  empire,  event- 
ually compelled  Mohammed  to  conclude  a  dishonorable 
peace  with  the  King  of  Castile.  He  agreed  to  do  hom- 
age for  his  crown  to  the  Castilian  sovereign,  to  put  the 
strong  place  of  Jaen  into  his  hands,  to  pay  him  a  trib- 
ute, and  to  furnish  him  with  auxiliary  troops  for  any 
wars  in  which  he  should  engage.  On  these  conditions 
Ferdinand  acknowledged  him  King  of  Grenada,  and 
even  aided  him  in  subduing  his  rebellious  subjects. 

The  sagacious  Ferdinand  thus  established  a  truce 
with  Grenada,  that  he  might  the  more  effectually  con- 
centrate his  forces  against  Seville,  which  he  had  long 
entertained  hopes  of  conquering. 

The  important  city  of  Seville  was  no  longer  under 
the  dominion  of  a  king,  but  formed  a  kind  of  republic, 
governed  by  military  magistrates.  Its  situation  at  no 
great  distance  from  the  mouth  of  the  Guadalquivir,  its 
commerce,  its  population,  the  mildness  of  its  climate, 
and  the  fertility  of  the  environs,  rendered  Seville  one 
of  the  most  flourishing  cities  of  Spain. 

Ferdinand,  foreseeing  a  long  resistance,  commenced 


74  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

the  campaign  by  seizing  upon  all  the  neighboring 
towns. 

Finally,  he  laid  siege  to  Seville  itself,  and  his  fleet, 
stationed  at  the  mouth  of  the  Guadalquivir,  closed  the 
door  to  any  assistance  which  might  be  sent  from 
Africa  in  aid  of  the  beleaguered  city. 

The  siege  was  long  and  bloody.  The  Sevillians 
were  numerous  and  well  skilled  in  the  arts  of  war,  and 
their  ally,  the  King  of  Algarva,  harassed  the  besiegers 
unceasingly.  Notwithstanding  the  Extreme  bravery 
displayed  by  the  Christians  in  their  assaults,  and  the 
scarcity  of  provisions  which  began  to  be  felt  within 
the  walls,  the  city,  after  an  investment  of  a  whole  year, 
still  refused  to  surrender. 

Ferdinand  then  summoned  the  King  of  Grenada  to 
come,  in  accordance  with  their  treaty,  and  serve  under 
his  banners.  Alhamar  was  forced  to  obey,  and  soon 
presented  himself  in  the  Christian  camp  at  the  head  of 
a  brilliant  army.  The  inhabitants  of  Seville  lost  all 
hope  after  this  occurrence,  and  surrendered  to  the  Cas- 
tilian  monarch.  The  King  of  Grenada  returned  to  his 
own  dominions  with  the  humiliating  glory  of  having 
contributed,  by  his  assistance,  to  the  ruin  of  his  coun- 
trymen. 

Ferdinand,  with  more  piety  than  policy,  banished 
the  infidels  from  Seville.  One  hundred  thousand  of 
that  unfortunate  people  left  the  city,  to  seek  an  exile's 
home  in  Africa  or  in  the  provinces  of  Grenada. 

The  kingdom  of  Grenada  now  became  the  sole  and 
last  asylum  of  the  Spanish  Moslems.  The  little  king- 
dom of  Algarva  was  soon  obliged  to  receive  the  yoke 
of  Portugal,  and  Murcia,  in  consequence  of  its  separa- 
tion from  Grenada,  became  the  prey  of  the  Castilians. 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  75 

During  the  life  of  Ferdinand  III.,  nothing  occurred 
to  interrupt  the  good  understanding  that  existed  be- 
tween that  monarch  and  Mohammed  Alhamar. 

The  King  of  Grenada  wisely  took  advantage  of  this 
peaceful  period  more  effectually  to  confirm  himself  in 
the  possession  of  his  crown,  and  to  make  preparations 
for  a  renewal  of  hostilities  against  the  Christians,  who 
would  not,  he  foresaw,  long  remain  his  friends. 

Mohammed,  by  this  means,  ultimately  found  him- 
self in  a  condition  that  would  enable  him  long  to  de- 
fend his  power  and  dominions.  He  was  master  of  a 
country  of  great  extent,  and  he  possessed  considerable 
revenues,  the  amount  of  which  it  is  now  difficult  cor- 
rectly to  estimate,  in  consequence  of  the  ignorance 
which  prevails  on  the  subject  of  the  peculiar  financial 
system  of  the  Moors,  and  the  different  sources  from 
which  the  public  treasury  was  supplied.  Every  hus- 
bandman, for  example,  paid  the  seventh  part  of  the 
produce  of  his  fields  to  his  sovereign ;  his  flocks  even 
were  not  exempted  from  this  exaction.  The  royal  do- 
main comprised  numerous  valuable  farms ;  and,  as 
agriculture  was  carried  to  the  highest  degree  of  per- 
fection, the  revenues  from  these,  in  so  luxuriant  a 
country,  must  have  amounted  to  a  very  large  sum. 
The  annual  income  of  the  sovereign  was  augmented 
by  various  taxes  levied  on  the  sale,  marking,  and  pas- 
sage from  one  point  to  another  of  all  kinds  of  cattle. 
The  laws  bestowed  on  the  king  the  inheritance  of  such 
of  his  subjects  as  died  childless,  and  gave  him,  in  addi- 
tion, a  portion  in  the  estates  of  other  deceased  persons. 
He  also  possessed,  as  has  been  already  shown,  mines 
of  gold,  silver,  and  precious  stones;  and  though  the 
Moors  were  but  little  skilled  in  the  art  of  mining,  still 


76  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

there  was  no  country  in  Europe  in  which  gold  and  sil- 
ver were  more  common  than  among  them. 

The  commerce  carried  on  in  their  beautiful  silks, 
and  in  a  great  variety  of  other  productions ;  their  con- 
tiguity to  the  Mediterranean  and  Atlantic ;  their  activ- 
ity, industry,  and  astonishing  population ;  their  super- 
ior knowledge  of  the  science  of  agriculture;  the  so- 
briety natural  to  all  the  inhabitants  of  Spain ;  and  that 
peculiar  property  of  a  southern  climate,  by  which  much 
is  produced  from  the  soil,  while  very  little  suffices  for 
the  maintenance  of  its  possessor;  all  these,  united  with 
their  other  national  advantages,  will  furnish  some  idea 
of  the  great  power  and  resources  of  this  singular 
people. 

Their  standing  military  force — it  can  scarcely  be 
said  in  times  of  peace,  for  they  rarely  knew  the  bless- 
ings of  that  state — amounted  to  nearly  a  hundred 
thousand  men ;  and  this  army,  in  case  of  necessity, 
could  easily  be  increased  to  double  that  number.  The 
single  city  of  Grenada  could  furnish  fifty  thousand 
soldiers.  Indeed,  every  Moor  would  readily  become  a 
soldier  to  oppose  the  Christians.  The  difference  of 
faith  rendered  these  wars  sacred  in  their  eyes ;  and  the 
mutual  hatred  entertained  by  these  two  almost  equally 
superstitious  nations  never  failed  to  arm,  when  neces- 
sary, every  individual  of  both  sides,  even  from  children 
to  old  men. 

Independent  of  the  numerous  and  brave,  but  ill- 
disciplined  troops,  who  would  assemble  for  a  campaign, 
and  afterward  return  to  their  homes  without  occasion- 
ing any  expense  to  the  state,  the  Moorish  monarch 
maintained  a  considerable  corps  of  cavaliers,  who  were 
dispersed  along  the  frontiers,  particularly  in  the  direc- 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  77 

tions  of  Murcia  and  Jaen,  those  parts  of  the  country 
being  most  exposed  to  the  repeated  incursions  of  the 
Spaniards.  Upon  each  of  these  cavaliers  the  king  be- 
stowed for  life  a  small  habitation,  with  sufficient  ad- 
joining ground  for  his  own  maintenance,  and  that  of 
his  family  and  horse.  This  method  of  keeping  soldiers 
in  service,  while  it  occasioned  no  expense  to  the  public 
treasury,  served  to  attach  them  more  firmly  to  their 
country,  by  identifying  their  interests  with  hers;  and 
it  held  put  to  them  the  strongest  motives  faithfully  to 
defend  their  charge,  inasmuch  as  their  patrimony  was 
always  first  exposed  to  the  ravages  of  the  enemy. 

At  a  time  when  the  art  of  war  had  not  reached  the 
perfection  it  has  now  attained,  and  when  large  bodies 
of  troops  were  not  kept  continually  assembled  and  ex- 
ercised, the  system  of  stationing  this  peculiar  guard 
along  the  frontiers  was  of  admirable  effect. 

The  knights  who  composed  this  unrivalled- cavalry 
were  mounted  on  African  or  Andalusian  chargers, 
whose  merits  in  the  field  are  so  well  known,  and  were 
accustomed  from  infancy  to  their  management;  treat- 
ing them  with  the  tenderest  care,  and  regarding  them 
as  their  inseparable  companions :  by  these  means  they 
acquired  that  remarkable  superiority  for  which  the 
Moorish  cavalry  is  still  so  celebrated. 

These  redoubtable  squadrons,  whose  velocity  of 
movement  was  unequalled ;  who  would,  almost  at  the 
same  moment,  charge  in  mass,  break  into  detached 
troops,  scatter,  rally,  fly  off,  and  again  form  in  line; 
these  cavaliers,  whose  voice,  whose  slightest  gesture, 
whose  very  thoughts,  so  to  speak,,  were  intelligible  to 
their  docile  and  sagacious  steeds,  and  who  were  able 
to  recover  a  lance  or  sabre  that  had  fallen  to  the  earth 


78  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

while  in  full  gallop,  constituted  the  principal  military 
force  of  the  Moors.  Their  infantry  was  of  little  value ; 
and  their  ill-fortified  towns,  surrounded  only  by  walls 
and  moats,  and  defended  by  this  worthless  infantry, 
could  offer  but  an  imperfect  resistance  to  that  of  the 
Spaniards,  which  began  already  to  deserve  the  repu- 
tation it  afterward  so  well  sustained  in  Italy,  under 
Gonzalvo,  the  Great  Captain. 

After  the  death  of  St.  Ferdinand,  his  son  Alphonso 
the  Sage,  mounted  the  throne,  A.  D.  1252,  Heg.  650. 
The  first  care  of  Mohammed  Alhamar  after  this  event 
was  to  go  in  person  to  Toledo,  followed  by  a  brilliant 
retinue,  to  renew  the  treaty  of  alliance,  or,  rather,  of 
dependence,  by  which  he  was  united  to  Ferdinand. 
The  new  king  of  Castile  remitted  on  this  occasion  a 
part  of  the  tribute  to  which  the  Moors  had  been  sub- 
jected. 

But  this  peace  was  not  of  long  continuance ;  and 
the  two  contending  nations  now  recommenced  the  war 
with  nearly  equal  advantages. 

An  incident  is  related  as  having  occurred  during 
this  war,  which  reflects  equal  honor  on  the  humanity 
of  the  Moors  and  the  courage  of  the  Spaniards.  It 
refers  to  Garcias  Gomes,  governor  of  the  city  of  Xeres. 
He  was  besieged  by  the  Grenadians,  and  his  garrison 
nearly  destroyed,  but  still  he  refused  to  surrender; 
and,  standing  on  the  ramparts  covered  with  blood,  and 
literally  bristling  with  arrows,  he  sustained  alone  the 
onset  of  the  assailants.  The  Moors,  on  seeing  him  in 
this  situation,  agreed,  with  one  accord,  to  spare  the 
life  of  so  brave  a  man.  Garcias  then  threw  himself 
from  the  walls  upon  some  iron  hooks ;  but  he  was  res- 
cued alive  in  spite  of  his  efforts  to  prevent  it,  treated 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  79 

with  respect  by  his  captors,  and,  after  his  wounds  were 
healed,  dismissed  with  presents. 

Alhamar  could  not  prevent  Alphonso  from  adding 
the  kingdom  of  Murcia  to  his  dominions ;  and  the  for- 
tunes of  war  compelled  him  to  obtain  peace  by  sub- 
mitting anew  to  the  payment  of  tribute  to  the  Catholic 
sovereign,  A.  D.  1266,  Heg.  665. 

But  some  dissensions  which  soon  after  arose  be- 
tween the  Castilian  monarch  and  some  of  the  grandees 
of  his  kingdom,  inspired  the  Grenadian  king  with  the 
hope  of  repairing  the "  loss  he  had  sustained.  The 
brother  of  Alphonso,  together  with  several  noblemen 
belonging  to  the  principal  Castilian  families,  retired  to 
Grenada  in  open  defiance  of  the  authority  of  the  Span- 
ish monarch,  and  materially  aided  Mohammed  Al- 
hamar in  repressing  the  insurrectionary  movements  of 
two  of  his  rebellious  subjects,  who  were  countenanced 
in  their  attempts  by  the  Christians. 

But,  just  at  this  juncture,  the  wise  and  politic  King 
of  Grenada  died,  leaving  the  throne  that  he  had  ac- 
quired and  preserved  by  his  talents  to  his  son  Mo- 
hammed II.,  El  Fakik,  A.  D.  1273,  Heg.  672. 

The  new  Mussulman  king,  who  took  the  title  of 
Emir  al  Mumcnim,  adopted  in  all  respects  the  policy  of 
his  father.  He  took  every  advantage  in  his  power  of 
the  discord  which  reigned  at  the  Castilian  court,  and 
of  the  ineffectual  voyages  undertaken  by  Alphonso  in 
the  hope  of  being  elected  emperor.  Finally,  during 
the  absence  of  his  enemy,  Mohammed  formed  an 
offensive  league  with  Jacob,  the  king  of  Morocco,  a 
prince  of  the  race  of  the  Merines,  the  conquerors  and 
successors  of  the  Almohades.  The  Grenadian  sover- 
eign ceded  to  his  African  ally  the  two  important  places 


80  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

of  Tariffe  and  Algeziras,  on  condition  of  his  crossing 
the  Mediterranean  to  the  Peninsula. 

Jacob,  in  accordance  with  this  agreement,  arrived 
in  Spain,  at  the  head  of  an  army,  in  the  year  1275  (the 
675th  of  the  Hegira)  ;  and  the  two  Moorish  leaders,  by 
acting  in  concert,  gained  some  important  advantages. 

But  the  criminal  revolt  of  Sancho,  the  Infant  of 
Castile,  against  his  father  Alphonso  the  Sage,  soon 
afterward  divided  these  Mussulman  monarchs.  The 
King  of  Grenada  took  the  part  of  the  rebellious  son, 
while  Alphonso,  reduced  to  extremity  by  the  abandon- 
ment of  his  subjects,  implored  the  assistance  of  the 
King  of  Morocco.  Jacob  recrossed  the  sea  with  his 
troops,  and  met  Alphonso  at  Zara.  At  that  cele- 
brated interview,  the  unfortunate  Castilian  wished  to 
concede  the  place  of  honor  to  the  king,  who  was  there 
as  his  defender.  "  It  belongs  to  you,"  said  Jacob  to 
him,  "because  you  are  unfortunate !  I  came  here  to 
avenge  a  cause  which  should  be  that  of  every  father. 
I  came  here  to  aid  you  in  punishing  an  ingrate,  who, 
though  he  received  life  from  you,  would  still  deprive 
you  of  your  crown.  When  I  shall  have  fulfilled  this 
duty,  and  you  are  again  prosperous  and  happy,  I  will 
once  more  become  your  enemy,  and  contest  every  point 
of  precedence  with  you." 

The  soul  of  the  Christian  prince  was  not  sufficiently 
noble,  however,  to  prompt  him  to  confide  himself  to 
the  monarch  who  had  uttered  these  sentiments,  and 
he  escaped  from  the  camp.  Alphonso  died  soon  after 
this  event,  disinheriting  his  guilty  son  before  he  ex- 
pired, A.  D.  1284,  Heg.  683. 

Sancho  reigned  in  his  father's  stead,  however,  not- 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  81 

withstanding  this  prohibition,  and  international 
troubles  convulsed  Castile  anew. 

Mohammed  seized  this  moment  to  enter  Andalusia. 
He  gained  several  battles,  and  took  some  important 
places  in  that  kingdom,  and  thus  victoriously  termin- 
ated a  long  and  glorious  reign,  A.  D.  1302,  Heg.  703. 

This  Mohammed  Emir  al  -Mumenim,  the  principal 
political  events  of  whose  life  have  now  been  briefly 
narrated,  was  a  munificent  patron  of  the  fine  arts.  He 
added  their  charms  to  the  attractions  of  a  court  which 
poets,  philosophers,  and  astronomers  alike  contributed 
to  render  celebrated. 

As  an  illustration  of  the  scientific  superiority  that 
the  Moors  still  maintained  over  the  Spaniards,  the  fact 
may  be  mentioned  that  Alphonso  the  Sage,  king  of 
Castile,  availed  himself,  in  the  arrangement  of  his 
astronomical  tables  (still  known  as  the  Alphonsine 
Tables),  of  the  assistance  of  some  contemporary  Mos- 
lem savans. 

Grenada  began  by  this  time  to  replace  Cordova. 
Architecture,  above  all,  made  great  advances.  It  was 
during  the  reign  of  Mohammed  II.  that  the  famous  pal- 
ace of  the  Alhambra  was  commenced,  a  part  of  which 
still  remains  to  astonish  travelers,  whom  its  name 
alone  suffices  to  attract  to  Grenada. 

To  prove  to  what  a  height  of  perfection  the  Moors 
had  succeeded  in  carrying  the  art,  then  so  little  known 
to  Europeans,  of  uniting  the  magnificent  and  the  lux- 
urious, a  few  details  may  perhaps  be  pardoned  con- 
cerning this  singular  edifice,  and  as  an  illustration, 
also,  of  the  particular  manners  and  customs  of  the 
Moors. 

The  Alhambra,  as  has  been  said,  was  at  first  only 

M.  ef  H.— XXX IV— 6 


82  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

a  vast  fortress,  standing  upon  one  of  the  two  hills  en- 
closed within  the  city  of  Grenada.  This  hill,  though 
environed  on  every  side  by  the  waters  either  of  the 
Darra  or  the  Xenil,  was  defended,  in  addition,  by  a 
double  enclosure  of  walls.  It  was  on  the  summit  of 
this  elevation,  which  overlooked  the  wholef  city,  and 
from  which  one  might  behold  the  most  beautiful  pros- 
pect in  the  world,  in  the  midst  of  an  esplanade  covered 
with  trees  and  fountains,  that  Mohammed  selected  the 
site  of  his  palace. 

Nothing  with  which  we  are  familiar  in  architecture 
can  give  us  a  correct  idea  of  that  of  the  Moors.  They 
piled  up  buildings  without  order,  symmetry,  or  any 
attention  to  the  external  appearance  they  would  pre- 
sent. All  their  cares  were  bestowed  upon  the  interior 
of  their  structures.  There  they  exhausted  all  the  re- 
sources of  taste  and  magnificence,  to  combine  in  their 
apartments  the  requisites  for  luxurious  indulgence 
with  the  charms  of  nature  in  her  most  enchanting 
forms.  There,  in  saloons  adorned  with  the  most  beau- 
tiful marble,  and  paved  with  a  brilliant  imitation  of 
porcelain,  couches,  covered  with  stuffs  of  gold  and 
silver,  were  arranged  near  jets  d'eau,  whose  waters 
glanced  upward  toward  the  vaulted  roof,  and  spread 
a  delicious  coolness  through  an  atmosphere  embalmed 
by  the  delicate  odors  arising  from  exquisite  vases  of 
precious  perfumes,  mingled  with  the  fragrant  breath 
of  the  myrtle,  jasmine,  orange,  and  other  sweet-scented 
flowers  that  adorned  the  apartments. 

The  beautiful  palace  of  the  Alhambra,  as  it  now 
exists  at  Grenada,  presents  no  facade.  It  is  approached 
through  a  charming  avenue,  which  is  constantly  inter- 
sected by  rivulets,  whose  streams  wander  in  graceful 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  83 

curves  amid  groups  of  trees.  The  entrance  is  through 
a  large  square  tower,  which  formerly  bore  the  name  of 
the  Hall  of  Judgment.  A  religious  inscription  announces 
that  it  was  there  that  the  king  administered  justice 
after  the  ancient  manner  of  the  Hebrew  and  other  Ori- 
ental nations.  Several  buildings,  which  once  adjoined 
this  tower  were  destroyed  in  more  recent  times,  to 
give  placa-to  a  magnificent  palace  erected  by  Charles  V., 
a  description  of  which  is  not  necessary  to  our  sub- 
ject. Upon  penetrating  on  the  northern  side  into  the 
ancient  palace  of  the  Moorish  kings,  one  feels  as  if 
suddenly  transported  to  the  regions  of  fairyland.  The 
first  court  is  an  oblong  square,  surrounded  on  each  side 
by  a  gallery  in  the  form  of  an  arcade,  the  walls  and 
ceiling  of  which  are  covered  with  Mosaic  work,  fes- 
toons, arabesque  paintings,  gilding,  and  carving  in 
stucco,  of  the  most  admirable  workmanship.  All  the 
plain  spaces  between  these  various  ornaments  are 
filled  with  passages  transcribed  from  the  Alkoran,  or 
by  inscriptions  of  a  similar  character  to  the  following, 
which  will  suffice  to  create  some  idea  of  the  figurative 
style  of  Moorish  composition : 

"  Oh  Nazir !  thou  wert  born  the  master  of  a  throne, 
and,  like  the  star  th^t  announces  the  approach  of  day, 
thou  art  refulgent  with  a  brilliancy  that  belongs  to 
thee  alone !  Thine  arm  is  the  rampart  of  a  nation  ;  thy 
justice  an  all-pervading  luminary.  Thou  canst,  by  thy 
valor,  subdue  those  who  have  given  companions  to 
God !  Thy  numerous  people  are  thy  children,  and  thou 
renderest  them  all  happy  by  thy  goodness.  The  bright 
stars  of  the  firmament  shine  lovingly  upon  thee,  and 
the  glorious  light  of  the  sun  beams  upon  thee  with 
affectiojn.  The  stately  cedar,  the  proud  monarch  of  the 


.84  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

forest,  bows  his  lofty  head  at  thy  approach,  and  is 
again  uplifted  by  thy  puissant  hand !" 

In  the  midst  of  this  court,  which  is  paved  with 
white  marble,  is  a  long  basin  always  filled  with  run- 
ning water  of  sufficient  depth  for  bathing.  It  is  bor- 
dered on  each  side  by  beds  of  flowers,  and  surrounded 
by  walks  lined  with  orange-trees.  The  place  was 
called  the  Mesuar,  and  served  as  the  common  bathing- 
place  of  those  who  were  attached  to  the  service  of  the 
palace. 

From  thence  one  passes  into  the  celebrated  Court 
of  Lions,.  It  is  a  hundred  feet  in  length  and  fifty  in 
breadth.  A  colonnade  of  white  marble  supports  the 
gallery  that  runs  around  the  whole.  These  columns, 
standing  sometimes  two  and  sometimes  three  together, 
are  of  slender  proportions  and  fantastic  design ;  but 
their  lightness  and  grace  afford  pleasure  to  the  eye  of 
the  wondering  beholder.  The  walls,  and,  above  all, 
the  ceiling  of  the  circular  gallery,  are  covered  with  em- 
bellishments of  gold,  azure,  and  stucco,  wrought  into 
arabesques,  with  an  exquisite  delicacy  of  execution 
that  the  most  skillful  modern  workmen  would  find  it 
difficult  to  rival.  In  the  midst  of  these  ornaments  of 
ever-changing  variety  and  beauty  are  inscribed 
passages  from  the  Koran,  such  as  the  following,  which 
all  good  Mussulmans  are  required  frequently  to  repeat: 
God  is  great :  God  alone  is  supreme :  There  is  no  god  but 
God:  Celestial  enjoyment,  gratifications  of  the  heart,  de- 
lights of  the  soul  to  all  those  who  believe. 

At  either  extremity  of  the  Court  of  Lions  are 
placed,  within  the  interior  space  enclosed  by  the  gal- 
lery, and,  like  it,  supported  by  marble  columns,  two 
elegant  cupolas  of  fifteen  or  sixteen  feet  in  circumfer- 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  85 

cnce.  These  graceful  domes  form  a  covering  for  beau- 
tiful jets  d'eau.  In  the  center  of  the  lengthened  square, 
a  superb  alabaster  vase,  six  feet  in  diameter,  is  sup- 
ported in  an  elevated  position  in  the  midst  of  a  vast 
basin  by  the  forms  of  twelve  lions  sculptured  from 
white  marble.  This  vessel,  which  is  believed  to  have 
been  modelled  after  the  design  of  the  "molten  sea"  of 
the  Temple  of  Solomon,  is  again  surmounted  by  a 
smaller  vase,  from  which  shoot  forth  innumerable  tiny 
cascades,  which  together  present  the  form  of  a  great 
sheaf;  and,  falling  again  from  one  vase  into  another, 
and  from  these  into  the  large  basin  beneath,  create  a 
perpetual  flow,  whose  volume  is  increased  by  the  floods 
of  limpid  water  which  gush  in  a  continual  stream  from 
the  mouth  of  each  of  the  marble  lions. 

This  fountain,  like  each  of  the  others,  is  adorned 
with  inscriptions ;  for  the  Moors  ever  took  pleasure  in 
mingling  the  eloquence  of  poetry  with  the  graces  of 
sculpture.  To  us  their  conceptions  appear  singular 
and  their  expressions  exaggerated;  but  our  manners 
are  so  opposite  to  theirs ;  the  period  of  their  existence 
as  a  nation  is  so  far  removed,  and  we  know  so  little  of 
the  genius  of  their  language,  that  we  have,  perhaps,  no 
right  to  judge  the  literature  of  the  Moors  by  the  severe 
rules  of  modern  criticism.  And,  indeed,  the  specimens 
we  possess  of  the  French  and  Spanish  poetry  of  the 
thirteenth  and  fourteenth  centuries  are,  many  of  them, 
little  superior  to  the  verses  engraven  on  the  Fountain 
of  Lions,  of  which  the  following  is  a  translation: 

"  Oh  thou  who  beholdest  these  lions !  dost  thou  not 
perceive  that  they  need  only  to  breathe  to  possess  tke 
perfection  of  nature?  Oh  Mohammed!  Oh  potent 
sovereign !  God  originated  and  prolonged  thy  exist- 


«6  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

cnce,  that  thou  mightest  be  inspired  with  the  genius 
to  conceive  and  accomplish  these  novel  and  beautiful 
embellishments !  Thy  soul  is  adorned  by  the  most  en- 
nobling qualities  of  humanity.  This  enchanting  spot 
pictures  thy  admirable  virtues.  Like  the  lion,  thou  art 
terrible  in  combat;  and  nothing  can  be  more  justly 
compared  to  the  bountiful  and  unceasing  profusion  of 
the  limpid  waters  which  gush  from  the  bosom  of  this 
fountain,  and  fill  the  air  with  glittering  and  brilliant 
particles,  than  the  liberal  hand  of  Mohammed." 

We  will  not  attempt  a  description  in  detail  of  such 
other  portions  of  the  palace  of  the  Alhambra  as  still 
exist.  Some  of  these  served  as  halls  of  audience  or  of 
justice;  others  enclosed  the  baths  of  the  king,  the 
queen,  and  their  children.  Sleeping  apartments  still 
remain,  where  the  couches  were  disposed  either  in 
alcoves,  or  upon  platforms  covered  with  the  peculiar 
pavement  already  alluded  to;  but  always  near  a  foun- 
tain, the  unceasing  murmur  of  whose  dreamy  voice 
might  sooth  the  occupants  to  repose. 

In  the  music  saloon  of  this  once  luxurious  royal 
abode  are  four  elevated  galleries,  which,  ere  the  glory 
of  the  Alhambra  had  passed  away,  were  often  filled  by 
Moorish  musicians,  the  delightful  strains  of  whose 
varied  instruments  enchanted  the  court  of  Grenada. 
Then  the  fair  and  brave  reclined  in  graceful  groups  in 
ihe  center  of  the  apartment,  upon  rich  Oriental  car- 
pets, surrounding  the  alabaster  fountain,  whose  balmy 
breath  diffused  refreshing  coolness,  and  whose  softly 
gurgling  sounds  mingled  with  the  gentle  music  which 
was  ever  the  accompaniment  of  repose  and  enjoyment. 

In  an  apartment  which  was  at  the  same  time  the 
oratory  and  dressing-room  of  the  queen  of  this  mag- 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  87 

nificent  residence,  there  still  exists  a  slab  of  marble, 
pierced  with  an  infinite  number  of  small  apertures,  to 
admit  the  exhalations  of  the  perfumes  that  were  inces- 
santly burning  beneath  the  lofty  ceiling.  From  this 
part  of  the  palace,  too,  the  views  are  exquisitely  beau- 
tiful. The  windows  and  doors  opening  from  it  are  so 
arranged,  that  the  most  agreeable  prospects,  the  mel- 
lowest and  most  pleasing  effects  of  light,  perpetually 
fall  upon  the  delighted  eyes  of  those  within,  while 
balmy  breezes  constantly  renew  the  delicious  coolness 
of  the  air  that  breathes  through  this  enchanting  re- 
treat. 

Upon  leaving  the  marble  halls  and  lofty  towers  of 
the  Alhambra,  one  discerns,  on  the  side  of  a  neighbor- 
ing mountain,  the  famous  garden  of  the  Generalif, 
which  signifies,  in  the  Moorish  tongue,  the  Home  of 
Love.  In  this  garden  was  the  palace  to  which  the  kings 
of  Grenada  repaired  to  pass  the  season  of  spring.  It 
was  built  in  a  style  similar  to  that  of  the  Alhambra: 
the  same  gorgeous  splendor,  the  same  costly  magnifi- 
cence reigned  there.  The  edifice  is  now  destroyed; 
but  the  picturesque  situation,  the  ever-varied  and  ever- 
charming  landscape,  the  limpid  fountains,  the  spark- 
ling jets  d'eaii,  and  tumbling  waterfalls  of  the  Generalif, 
are  still  left  to  excite  admiration. 

The  terraces  of  this  garden  are  in  the  form  of  an 
amphitheatre,  and  the  lingering  remains  of  their  once 
beautiful  Mosaic  pavements  are  still  to  be  seen.  The 
walks  are  now  darkly  umbrageous,  from  the  inter- 
woven branches  of  gigantic  cypresses  and  aged  myr- 
tles, beneath  whose  grateful  shades  the  kings  and 
queens  of  Grenada  have  so  often  wandered.  The 
blooming  groves  and  forests  of  fruit-trees  were  agree- 


88  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

ably  intermingled  with  graceful  domes  and  marble 
pavilions:  then  the  sweet  perfume  of  the  countless 
flowers  that  mingled  their  varied  dyes  in  delightful 
confusion,  floated  in  the  soft  air..  Then  the  delicate 
tendrils  of  the  vine  clasped  the  supporting  branches 
of  the  orange,  and  both  together  hung  the  mingled 
gold  and  purple  of  their  clustering  fruits  over  the 
bright  waters  that  from  marble  founts 

"Gushed   up  to   sun  and  air!" 

Then  valor  and  beauty  strayed  side  by  side,  beneath 
embowering  branches,  the  fire  of  the  one  attempered 
to  gentleness  by  the  softer  graces  of  the  other,  and  the 
souls  of  both  elevated  and  purified  by  nature's  holy 
and  resistless  influences. 

But  now  the  luxuriant  vine  lies  prostrate,  its  climb- 
ing trunk  and  clinging  tendrils  rudely  torn  from  their 
once  firm  support :  even  the  voice  of  the  fountain  no 
longer  warbles  in  the  same  gladsome  tone  as  of  yore ; 
the  mouldering  fragments  of  the  polished  column  and 
sculptured  dome  are  now  strewed  on  the  earth ;  the 
sighing  of  the  gentle  breeze  no  longer  awakens  the 
soft  breath  of  responding  flowers ;  the  loveliness  and 
the  glory  of  the  Home  of  Love  are  vanished  away  for 
ever ;  and  the  crumbling  stones  of  the  tesselated  pave- 
ments echo  naught  but  the  lingering  footfall  of  the  sol- 
itary stranger,  who  wanders  thither  to  enjoy  those 
mournful  charms  of  which  the  destroyer  cannot  divest 
a  spot  that  must  ever  appeal  so  strongly  to  the  vision 
and  the  heart,  to  the  memory  and  the  imagination. 

It  is  painful  to  quit  the  Alhambra  and  the  Generalif, 
to  return  to  the  ravages,  incursions,  and  sanguinary 
quarrels  of  the  Moors  and  Christians. 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  89 

It  was  the  fate  of  Mohammed  III.  (surnamed  the 
Blind),  to  be  obliged  at  the  same  time  to  repress  the 
rebellious  movements  of  his  own  subjects  and  repel 
the  invasions  of  his  Catholic  neighbors.  Compelled  by 
the  infirmity  from  which  he  derived  his  appellation  to 
chose  a  prime  minister,  he  bestowed  that  important 
post  upon  Farady,  the  husband  of  his  sister,  a  judicious 
statesman  and  a  brave  soldier,  who  for  some  time  pros- 
perously continued  the  war  against  the  Castilians,  and 
finally  concluded  it  by  an  honorable  peace. 

But  the  courtiers,  jealous  of  the  glory  and  envious 
of  the  good-fortune  of  the  favorite,  formed  a  conspiracy 
against  his  master,  and  instigated  revolts  among  the 
people.  To  complete  his  calamities,  foreign  war  again 
broke  forth ;  the  King  of  Castile,  Ferdinand  IV.,  sur- 
named the  Summoned,  united  with  the  King  of  Aragon 
in  attacking  the  Grenadians. 

Gibraltar  was  taken  by  the  Castilians,  and  the  con- 
queror expelled  its  Moorish  inhabitants  from  its  walls. 
Among  the  unfortunate  exiles  who  departed  from  the 
city  was  an  old  man,  who,  perceiving  Ferdinand,  ap- 
proached him,  leaning  on  his  staff:  "King  of  Castile," 
he  said  to  him,  "what  injury  have  I  done  to  thee  or 
thine?  Thy  great-grandfather  Ferdinand  drove  me 
from  my  native  Seville:  I  sought  an  asylum  at  Xeres; 
thy  grandfather  Alphonso  banished  me  from  thence : 
retiring  within  the  walls  of  Tariffe,  thy  father  Sancho 
exiled  me  from  that  city.  At  last  I  came  to  find  a 
grave  at  the  extremity  of  Spain,  on  the  shore  of 
Gibraltar ;  but  thy  hatred  hath  pursued  me  even  here : 
tell  me  now  of  one  place  on  earth  where  I  can  die  un- 
molested by  the  Christians !" 


90  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

"Cross  the  sea!"  replied  the  Spanish  prince;  and  he 
caused  the  aged  petitioner  to  be  conveyed  to  Africa. 

Vanquished  by  the  Aragonians,  harassed  by  the 
Castilians,  and  alarmed  by  the  seditious  proceedings 
which  the  grandees  of  his  court  were  encouraging 
among  his  own  subjects,  the  King  of  Grenada  and  his 
prime  minister  were  forced  to  conclude  a  shameful 
peace. 

The  intestine  storm,  whose  gathering  had  long  dis- 
turbed the  domestic  security  of  the  kingdom,  soon  after 
burst  forth.  Mohammed  Abenazar,  brother  of  Mo- 
hammed the  Blind,  and  the  head  of  the  conspiracy, 
seized  the  unfortunate  monarch,  put  him  to  death,  and 
assumed  his  place,  A.  D.  1310,  Heg.  710. 

But  the  usurper  himself  was  soon  driven  from  his 
throne  by  Farady,  the  ancient  minister,  who,  not  dar- 
ing to  appropriate  the  crown  to  himself,  placed  it  on 
the  head  of  his  son  Ismael,  the  nephew  of  Mohammed 
the  Blind,  through  his  mother,  the  sister  of  that  mon- 
arch. 

This  event  took  place  A.  D.  1313,  Heg.  713.  From 
that  period  the  royal  family  of  .Grenada  was  divided 
into  two  branches,  which  were  ever  after  at  enmity 
with  each  other ;  the  one,  called  the  Alhamar,  included 
the  descendants  of  the  first  king  through  the  males  of 
the  line,  and  the  other,  named  Farady,  was  that  of  such 
of  his  offspring  as  were  the  children  of  the  female 
branches  of  the  royal  race. 

The  Castilians,  whose  interests  were  always  pro- 
moted by  cherishing  dissensions  among  their  Moorish 
neighbors,  lent  their  countenance  to  Abenazar.  who 
had  taken  refuge  in  the  city  of  Grenada.  The  Infant 
Don  Pedro,  uncle  to  the  youthful  King  of  Castile,  Al- 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  91 

phonso  the  Avenger,  as  he  was  surnamed,  took  the  field 
against  Ismael,  and  several  times  gave  battle  to  the 
followers  of  the  Crescent.  Then  joining  his  forces  to 
those  of  another  Infant  named  Don  Juan,  the  two 
friends  carried  fire  and  sword  to  the  very  ramparts  of 
Grenada.  The  infidel  warriors  did  not  venture  to  sally 
from  their  walls  to  repel  the  invaders;  but  when, 
loaded  with  booty,  the  Christians  had  commenced  their 
return  to  Castile,  Ismael  followed  on  their  route  with 
his  army,  and,  soon  overtaking  his  ruthless  foes,  fell 
suddenly  upon  their  rear.  It  was  now  the  26th  of  June, 
and  the  time  chosen  by  the  Mussulmans  for  the  attack 
was  the  hottest  hour  of  a  burning  day.  The  two  Span- 
ish princes  made  such  violent  efforts  to  reorganize  their 
scattered  bands  and  to  recover  their  lost  authority, 
that,  exhausted  at  last  by  thirst  and  fatigue,  they  both 
fell  dead  without  having  received  a  wound. 

The  dismayed  and  exhausted  Spaniards  could  now 
no  longer  offer  any  resistance  to  their  furious  enemies. 
They  betook  themselves  to  flight,  leaving  their  bag- 
gage, with  the  bodies  of  the  two  unfortunate  Infants, 
on  the  field  of  battle.  Ismael  caused  the  remains  of 
these  princes  to  be  conveyed  to  Grenada  and  deposited 
in  coffins  covered  with  cloth  of  gold :  he  then  restored 
them  to  the  Castilians,  after  having  bestowed  on  them 
the  most  distinguished  funeral  honors. 

This  victory  was  rapidly  followed  by  the  conquest 
of  several  cities  and  the  establishment  of  an  honorable 
truce.  But  Ismael  did  not  live  to  enjoy  the  fruits  of 
his  success :  being  enamored  of  a  young  Spanish  cap- 
tive, who  had  fallen,  in  the  Division  of  the  spoils,  to  the 
share  of  one  of  his  officers,  the  king  so  far  forgot  the 
laws  of  justice  and  honor  as  to  possess  himself  by  force 


92  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

of  the  beautiful  slave.  Such  an  insult  among1  the  fol- 
lowers of  Islam  can  only  be  expiated  by  blood :  the 
monarch  was  assassinated  by  his  exasperated  officer. 
His  son  Mohammed  V.  mounted  the  throne  in  his 
stead,  A.  D.  1322,  Heg.  722. 

The  reign  of  Mohammed  V.  and  that  of  his  suc- 
cessor Joseph  I.,  both  of  whom  perished  in  the  same 
manner  (being  murdered  in  their  palace),  present 
nothing  during  thirty  years  but  an  unbroken  series  of 
ravages,  seditions,  and  combats. 

At  the  request  of  the  Grenadians,  Abil-Hassan,  king 
of  Morocco,  of  the  dynasty  of  the  Merinis,  landed  in 
Spain  at  the  head  of  innumerable  troops,  with  whom 
he  joined  the  army  of  Joseph.  The  kings  of  Castile 
and  Portugal  unitedly  gave  battle  to  this  immense 
army  on  the  shores  of  Salado,  not  far  from  the  city  of 
Tariffe.  This  encounter,  equally  celebrated  with  the 
victory  of  Toloza  in  the  history  of  Spain,  terminated 
in  the  defeat  of  the  Moors.  Abil-Hassan  returned 
hastily  to  Morocco,  to  conceal  within  his  own  domin- 
ions his  chagrin  at  its  unexpected  and  disastrous  issue. 

The  strong  place  of  Algeziras,  the  bulwark  of  Gren- 
ada, and  the  magazine  in  which  was  deposited  the 
necessary  supplies  received  by  that  kingdom  from 
Africa,  was  besieged  by  the  Castilians  A.  D.  1342,  Heg. 
742.  Several  French,  English,  and  Navarrois  cavaliers 
resorted  on  this  occasion  to  the  camp  of  the  beleaguer- 
ing army.  The  Mussulmans  availed  themselves  of  the 
use  of  cannon  in  the  defence  of  their  city;  and  this  is 
the  first  time  that  the  employment  of  that  description 
of  ordnance  is  spoken  of  in  history.  We  are  told  that 
it  was  used  at  the  battle  of  Cressy  by  the  English ;  but 
that  event  did  not  take  place  until  four  vears  after  the 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  93 

date  of  the  present  siege.  It  is,  then,  to  the  Spanish 
Moors  that  we  owe,  not  the  "discovery  of  gunpowder 
(for  that  is  attributed  by  some  to  the  Chinese,  by 
others  to  a  German  monk  named  Schwartz,  and  by 
others  again  to  Roger  Bacon,  an  Englishman),  but  the 
terrible  invention  of  artillery.  It  is  at  least  certain, 
that  the  Moors  planted  the  first  cannon  of  which  we 
have  any  account.  But,  in  spite  of  the  advantages  it 
thus  possessed,  Algeziras  was  taken  by  the  Christians, 
A.  D.  1344,  Heg.  745. 

About  ten  years  after  this  event,  the  unfortunate 
Joseph,  vrho  had  been  so  often  attacked  by  foreign 
enemies,  met  his  death  from  the  hands  of  his  own 
subjects. 

It  may  have  been  remarked  by  the  reader,  that  no 
established  law  regulated  the  regal  succession  among 
the  Moors.  Yet,  notwithstanding  the  perpetual  con- 
spiracies and  intrigues  which  rendered  the  possession 
of  the  crown  so  insecure  and  of  such  uncertain  dura- 
tion, a  prince  of  the  royal  race  always  occupied  the 
throne.  We  have  seen  Grenada  divided,  since  the  vio- 
lent termination  of  the  reign  of  Ismael,  between  the 
factions  of  the  Alhamar  and  the  Farady,  and  the  former 
deposed  by  the  latter,  who  always  regarded  the  Alham- 
ars  as  usurpers.  This  unhappy  contest  was  the  source  of 
numberless  disorders,  conspiracies,  and  assassinations. 

The  monarch  next  in  order  to  Joseph  I.  on  the 
throne  of  Grenada  was  his  uncle,  a  Farady  prince 
named  Mohammed  VI.,  and  called  the  Old,  in  conse- 
quence of  his  succeeding  at  a  somewhat  advanced  period 
of  life. 

Mohammed  the  Red,  a  scion  of  the  Alhamar  race, 


94  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

drove  his  cousin,  Mohammed  the  Old,  from  the  throne, 
A.  D.  1360,  Heg.  762,  and  retained  it  for  some  years, 
through  the  protection  of  the  King  of  Aragon. 

Peter  the  Cruel,  then  king  of  Castile,  espoused  the 
cause  of  the  banished  Farady,  supported  his  claims  by 
warlike  arguments,  and  so  closely  pressed  Mohammed 
the  Alhamar,  that  he  adopted  the  resolution  of  repair- 
ing to  Seville,  and  abandoning  himself  to  the  mag- 
nanimity of  his  royal  foe. 

Mohammed  arrived  at  the  court  of  Seville  accom- 
panied by  a  suite  composed  of  his  most' faithful  friends, 
and  bearing  with  him  vast  treasures.  He  presented 
himself  with  noble  confidence  in  the  presence  of  the 
monarch..  "  King  of  Castile !"  said  he  to  Peter,  "the 
blood  alike  of  Christian  and  Moor  has  too  long  flowed 
in  my  contest  with  the  Farady.  You  protect  my  rival ; 
yet  it  is  you  whom  I  select  to  adjudge  our  quarrel. 
Examine  my  claims  and  those  of  my  enemy,  and  pro- 
nounce who  shall  be  the  sovereign  of  Grenada.  If  you 
decide  in  favor  of  the  Farady,  I  demand  only  to  be 
conducted  to  Africa;  if  you  accord  the  preference  to 
me,  receive  the  homage  that  I  have  come  to  render 
you  for  my  crown !" 

The  astonished  Peter  lavished  honors  upon  the 
Mussulman  king,  and  caused  him  to  be  seated  at  his 
side  during  the  magnificent  feast  by  which  he  signal- 
ized the  occasion.  But,  when  the  Alhamar  retired  from 
the  entertainment,  he  was  seized  and  thrown  into 
prison.  From  thence  he  was  afterward  conducted 
through  the  streets  of  the  city,  seated,  half  naked,  upon 
an  ass,  and  led  to  a  field  termed  the  Tablada,  where 
thirty-seven  of  his  devoted  followers  were  deprived  of 
their  heads  in  his  presence.  The  execrable  Peter, 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  95 

envying  the  executioner  the  pleasure  of  shedding  his 
blood,  then  thrust  through  the  unfortunate  King  of 
Grenada  with  his  own  lance.  The  dying  sovereign 
uttered  only  these  words  as  he  expired :  "Oh  Peter, 
Peter,  what  a  deed  for  a  cavalier!" 

By  a  very  extraordinary  fatality,  every  throne  in 
Spain  was  at  this  period  occupied  by  princes  whose 
characters  were  blackened  by  the  most  atrocious 
crimes.  Peter  the  Cruel,  the  Nero  of  Castile,  assassin- 
ated the  kings  who  confided  themselves  to  his  protec- 
tion, put  to  death  his  wife  Blanche  of  Bourbon,  and,  in 
short,  daily  imbrued  his  hands  in  the  blood  of  his  rela- 
tives or  friends.  Peter  IV.  of  Aragon,  less  violent  than 
the  Castilian,  but  equally  unfeeling  and  even  more  per- 
fidious, despoiled  one  of  his  brothers  of  his  kingdom, 
commanded  another  to  be  put  to  death,  and  delivered 
his  ancient  preceptor  to  the  executioners.  Peter  I., 
king  of  Portugal,  the  lover  of  the  celebrated  Inez  de 
Castro,  whose  ferocity  was  doubtless  excited  and  in- 
creased by  the  cruelty  that  had  been  exercised  against 
his  mistress,  tore  out  the  hearts  of  the  murderers  of 
Inez,  and  poisoned  a  sister  with  whom  he  was  dis- 
pleased. Finally,  the  contemporary  King  of  Navarre 
was  that  Charles  the  Bad,  whose  name  alone  is  suffi- 
cient still  to  cause  a  shudder.  All  Spain  groaned  be- 
neath the  iron  rule  of  these  monsters  of  cruelty,  and 
was  inundated  by  the  blood  of  their  victims.  If  it  be 
remembered  that,  at  the  same  time,  France  had  become 
a  prey  to  the  horrors  which  followed  the  imprisonment 
of  King  John ;  that  England  witnessed  the  commence- 
ment of  the  troubled  reign  of  Richard  II. ;  that  Italy 
was  delivered  up  to  the  contentions  of  the  rival  fac- 
tions of  the  Guelfs  and  Ghibelines,  and  beheld  two 


9«  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

occupants  at  the  same  time  upon  the  papal  throne ;  that 
two  emperors  disputed  the  right  to  the  imperial  crown 
of  Germany ;  and  that  Timurlane  ravaged  Asia  from 
the  territories  of  the  Usbeks  to  the  borders  of  India,  it 
will  not  be  disputed  that  the  history  of  the  world  re- 
cords the  annals  of  no  more  unhappy  epoch  in  its 
affairs. 

Grenada  was  at  last  tranquil  after  the  crime  of  Peter 
the  Cruel.  Mohammed  the  Old,  or  the  Farady,  being 
now  freed  from  the  rival  claims  of  his  competitor,  re- 
mounted the  throne  without  opposition. 

Mohammed  was  the  only  ally  of  the  King  of  Castile 
who  remained  faithful  to  that  inhuman  monster  up  to 
the  period  of  his  death.  Peter  was  at  last  the  victim 
of  a  crime  similar  to  those  of  which  he  had  so  often 
himself  been  guilty :  his  illegitimate  brother,  Henry  de 
Transtamare,  deprived  him  of  his  crown  and  his  life, 
A.  D.  1369,  Heg.  771. 

The  King  of  Grenada  made  peace  with  the  new 
sovereign  of  Castile,  maintained  it  for  several  years, 
and  finally  left  his  kingdom  in  a  flourishing  condition 
to  his  son  Mohammed  VIII.,  Abouhadjad,  called  by  the 
Spanish  historians  Mohammed  Gaudix. 

This  prince  commenced  his  reign  A.  D.  1379,  Heg. 
782.  He  was  the  best  and  wisest  of  the  Spanish  Mo- 
hammedan kings.  Intent  only  upon  promoting  the 
happiness  of  his  people,  he  was  desirous  of  securing  to 
them  the  enjoyment  of  that  foreign  and  domestic  peace 
to  which  they  had  so  long  been  almost  utter  strangers. 
The  more  effectually  to  ensure  this,  Abouhadjad  com- 
menced his  reign  with  fortifying  his  towns,  raising  a 
strong  army,  and  .allying  himself  with  the  King  of 
Tunis,  whose  daughter  Cadiga  he  espoused.  When 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  97 

well  prepared  for  war,  the  Moorish  sbvereign  sent  am- 
bassadors to  the  King  of  Castile,  to  solicit  his  friend- 
ship. Don  Juan,  the  son  and  successor  of  Henry  de 
Transtamare,  being  sufficiently  occupied  by  his  quar- 
rels with  Portugal  and  England,  readily  signed  a  treaty 
with  the  royal  follower  of  the  Crescent ;  and  Abouhad- 
jad,  on  his  part,  kept  it  unbroken.  Secured  from  the 
inroads  of  the  Christians,  this  wise  monarch  now  occu- 
pied himself  in  promoting  the  increase  of  agriculture 
and  commerce:  he  likewise  diminished  the  rates  of  im- 
posts, and  soon  found  his  income  increased  in  conse- 
quence of  this  judicious  measure.  Beloved  by  a  people 
whom  he  rendered  happy,  respected  by  foreign  neigh- 
bors whom  he  had  no  reason  to  fear,  and  possessed  of 
an  amiable  wife,  who  alone  engaged  his  affections,  this 
excellent  Mussulman  prince  spent  the  wealth  and 
leisure  that  he  could  with  propriety  devote  to  such 
objects,  in  adorning  his  capital,  in  cherishing  the  fine 
arts,  and  in  cultivating  architecture  and  poetry.  Sev- 
eral monuments  of  his  munificence  existed  at  Grenada, 
and  at  Gaudix,  a  city  in  favor  of  which  he  entertained 
strong  predilections.  His  court  was  the  favored  abode 
of  genius  and  elegance. 

The  Moors  of  Spain  still  possessed  poets,  physi- 
cians, painters,  sculptors,  academies,  and  universities. 
And  these  were  all  liberally  encouraged  and  endowed 
by  Mohammed  Gaudix. 

Most  of  the  productions  of  the  Grenadian  authors 
of  this  period  perished  at  the  final  conquest  of  their 
country;  but  some  of  them  have  been  preserved,  and 
still  exist  in  the  library  of  the  Escurial.  They  chiefly 
treat  of  grammar,  astrology  (then  greatly  esteemed), 
and,  above  all,  of  theology,  a  study  in  which  the  Moors 

M.  of  H.— XXXIV— 7 


98  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

excelled.  That  people,  naturally  gifted  with  discrim- 
inating minds  and  ardent  imaginations,  produced  many 
distinguished  theologians,  who  may  easily  be  supposed 
to  have  introduced  into  Europe  the  unfortunate  scho- 
lastic taste  for  subtle  questions  and  disputes,  which 
once  rendered  so  celebrated,  men  whose  names  and 
achievements  have  since  sunk  for  ever  into  oblivion. 
The  pretended  secrets  of  the  cabal,  of  alchymv,  of 
judicial  astronomy,  of  the  divining  rod,  and  all  the  ac- 
counts, formerly  so  common,  of  sorcerers,  magicians, 
and  enchanters,  are  derived  from  these  descendants  of 
the  Arabs.  They  were  a  superstitious  race  from  the 
remotest  times;  and  it  is  probable  that  to  their  resi- 
dence in  Spain,  and  their  long  intercourse  with  the 
Spaniards,  is  owing  that  love  for  the  marvellous,  and 
that  well-deserved  reputation  for  superstitious  cre- 
dulity, with  which  philosophy  still  reproaches  a 
sprightly  and  intellectual  nation,  upon  whom  nature 
has  bestowed  the  germs  of  the  best  qualities  that  a  lorn 
humanity. 

A  kind  of  literature  which  was  common  ;  ng 
these  Saracens,  and  for  which  the  Spaniards  w  ;n- 
dcbted  to  them,  was  that  of  novels  or  romances  '^he 
Arabs  were  ever,  as  they  still  are,  passionate  1  of 

story-telling.  As  well  in  the  tents  of  the  wild  '  un 
as  in  the  palaces  of  the  East,  alike  under  the  'ed 
domes  and  peasant  roofs  of  Grenada,  this  tastf  -ire- 
vailed.  Everywhere  they  assembled  nightly  to  l;sten 
to  romantic  narratives  of  love  and  valor.  Everywhere 
they  listened  in  silent  attention,  or  wept  from  sympa- 
thetic interest  in  the  fate  of  those  whose  adventures 
formed  the  subject  of  the  tale.  The  Grenadians  joined 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  99 

with  this  passion  for  exciting  incident,  a  taste  for 
music  and  singing.  Their  poets  imbodied  in  verse 
these  favorite  recitals  of  love  and  war.  Musicians 
were  employed  in  composing  suitable  airs  for  them, 
and  they  were  thus  sung  by  the  youthful  Moors  with 
all  the  enthusiasm  that  passion,  poetry,  and  dulcet  har- 
mony can  unitedly  inspire.  From  this  national  custom 
are  derived  the  multitude  of  Spanish  romances,  trans- 
lated or  imitated  from  the  Arabic,  which,  in  a  simple 
and  sometimes  touching  style,  recount  the  fierce  com- 
bats of  the  Moors  and  Christians,  the  fatal  quarrels  of 
jealous  and  haughty  rivals,  or  the  tender  conversation 
of  lovers.  They  describe  with  great  exactness  every- 
thing relating  to  the  peculiar  manners  and  amusements 
of  this  interesting  and  extinguished  nation :  their  fetes, 
their  games  of  the  ring  and  of  canes,  and  their  bull- 
fights, the  latter  of  which  they  adopted  from  the  Span- 
iards, are  all  portrayed.  Thus  we  learn  that  their  war- 
like equipments  consisted  of  a  large  cimeter,  a  slender 
lance,  a  short  coat  of  mail,  and  a  light  leathern  buckler. 
We  have  descriptions  of  superb  horses,  with  their 
richly-jeweled  and  embroidered  housings  sweeping  the 
earth  in  ample  folds,  and  of  the  devices  emblazoned  on 
the  arms  of  the  graceful  Moorish  cavaliers.  These  last 
consisted  frequently  of  a  heart  pierced  by  an  arrow,  or 
perhaps  of  a  star  guiding  a  vessel,  or  of  the  first  letter 
of  the  name  of  the  fair  recipients  of  their  vows  of  love. 
We  learn,  too,  that  their  colors  each  bore  a  peculiar 
signification:  yellow  and  black  expressed  grief;  green, 
hope ;  blue,  jealousy ;  violet  and  flame  color,  passionate 
love. 

The  following  abridged  translation  of  one  of  these 
little  compositions  will  produce  a  more  correct  idea  of 


100  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

them  in  the  mind  of  the  reader  than  any  description 
could  convey : 

GONZULO  AND  ZELINDA. 

A  MOORISH   ROMANCE. 

In  a  tra»sport  of  jealousy  and  pride 
Zelinda  spurned  her  lover  from  her  side! 
His  cruel  doom  Gonzulo  heard 
With  bosom  wrung;  and  disappeared! 
But  the  fair  maid  soon  deeply  felt 
The  torturing  wound  herself  had  dealt; 
As  glides  the  snow  from  mountain  crest, 
So  fled  resentment  from  her  breast. 

They  tell  her  that  the  Moor's  proud  heart 
Is  pierced  by  grief's  most  poisoned  dart, 
And  that  he'd  doffed,  when  flying  from  her  side* 
The  tender  colors  that  were  once  his  pride; 
That  green,  of  hope  the  cherished  emblem  gay, 
To  sorrow's  mournful  hues  had  given  way. 
A  badge  of  crape  nis  lance's  point  now  wears, 
A  blackened  crown  his  shield  as  emblem  bears! 

To  proffer  gifts  with  different  meaning  fraught, 
Zelinda  now  her  errant  lover  sought: 
The  blue  of  jealousy  she  had  united 
\      With  all  the  hues  most  dear  to  lovers  plighted; 
A  violet  gem,  entwined  with  gold, 
Gleamed  mid  a  brqidered  turban's  fold; 
And  every  silken  riband  that  she  bore, 
Of  lovely  innocence  the  symbol  wore. 

Zelinda  reached  the  soft  retreat 

Where  Gonzulo  his  fate  must  meet! 

O'erwhelmed  with  doubt,  the  dark-eyed  maid 

Reclined  beneath  a  myrtle  shade, 

And  sent  a  faithful  page  to  guide 

Her  banished  lover  to  her  side. 

Gonzulo  scarce  the  message  would  receive, 

For  woe  had  taught  his  heart  to  disbelieve! 

But  soon  he  flew,  on  wings  of  love, 
To  seek  Zelinda's  chosen  grove. 
Then  tearful  glances  of  regret 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  101 

By  words  of  tenderness  were  met; 
And  ne'er  did  guardian  nymphs  record 
More  ardent  vows  than  there  were  poured! 
'Twas  thus  triumphant  love  repaired 
The  cruel  wrongs  that  each  had  shared! 

The  delicate  and  peculiar  gallantry,  which  rendered 
the  Moors  of  Grenada  famous  throughout  Europe, 
formed  a  singular  contrast  to  the  ferocity  that  is  so 
natural  to  all  nations  of  African  origin.  These  Islam- 
ites, whose  chief  glory  it  was  dexterously  to  deprive 
their  enemies  of  their  heads,  attach  them  to  their  sad- 
dle bows,  and  afterward  display  them  as  trophies  on 
the  battlements  of  their  towers  or  at  the  entrance  of 
their  palaces;  these  restless  and  ungovernable  war- 
riors, who  were  every  ready  to  revolt  against  their 
rulers,  to  depose  or  to  murder  them,  were  the  most 
tender,  the  most  devoted,  the  most  ardent  of  lovers. 
Their  wives,  though  their  domestic  position  was  little 
superior  to  that  of  slaves,  became,  when  they  were 
beloved,  the  absolute  sovereigns,  the  supreme  divin- 
ities of  those  whose  hearts  they  possessed.  It  was  to 
nlease  these  idolized  beings  that  the  Moorish  cavaliers 
sought  distinction  in  the  field ;  it  was  to  shine  in  their 
eyes  that  they  lavished  their  treasures  and  their  lives — 
that  they  mutually  endeavored  to  eclipse  each  other  in 
deeds  of  arms,  in  the  splendor  of  their  warlike  ex- 
ploits, and  the  Oriental  magnificence  of  their  fetes. 

It  cannot  no'w  be  determined  whether  the  Moors 
derived  this  extraordinary  union  of  softness  and 
cruelty,  of  delicacy  and  barbarity — this  generous 
rivalry  in  courage  and  in  constancy,  from  the  Span- 
iards, or  whether  the  Spaniards  acquired  these  charac- 
teristics from  the  Moors.  But  when  it  is  remembered 
that  they  do  not  belong  to  the  Asiatic  Arabs,  from 


102  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

whom  these  gallant  knights  originally  sprang;  that 
they  are  found,  even  in  a  less  degree,  if  possible,  among 
these  followers  of  Mohammed  in  that  portion  of  Africa 
where  their  conquests  have  naturalized  them ;  and,  that 
after  their  departure,  from  Spain,  the  Grenadians  lost 
every  trace  of  the  peculiarly  interesting  and  chivalrous 
qualities  by  which  they  had  previously  been  so  remark- 
ably distinguished,  there  is  some  ground  for  the  opin- 
ion that  it  was  to  the  Spaniards  that  their  Moslem 
neighbors  were  indebted  for  the  existence  of  these 
national  attributes.  In  truth,  before  the  invasion  ol 
Spain  by  the  Arabs,  the  courts  of  the  Gothic  kings  had 
already  offered  knightly  examples  of  a  similar  spirit. 
And  after  that  event  we  find  the  cavaliers  of  Leon, 
Navarre,  and  Castile  equally  renowned  for  their 
achievements  in  war  and  their  romantic  devotion  to 
the  fair  sex.  The'  mere  name  of  the  Cid  awakens  in  the 
mind  recollections  alike  of  tenderness  and  bravery.  It 
should  be  remembered,  too,  that,  long  after  the  expul- 
sion of  the  Moors  from  the  Peninsula,  the  Spaniards 
maintained  a  reputation  for  gallantry  far  superior  to 
that  of  the  French,  some  portion  of  the  spirit  of  which, 
though  extinct  among  every  other  European  nation, 
still  lingers  in  Spain. 

But,  be  this  point  decided  as  it  may,  it  is  not  to  b« 
disputed  that  the  daughters  of  Grenada  merited  the 
devotion  which  they  inspired:  they  were  perhaps  the 
most  fascinating  women  in  the  woJd.  We  find  in  the 
narrative  of  a  Moorish  historian,  who  wrote  at  Grenada 
during  the  reign  of  Mohammed  the  Old,  the  following 
description  of  his  countrywomen : 

"  Their  beauty  is  remarkable ;  but  the  loveliness 
which  strikes  the  beholder  at  first  sight  afterward  re- 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  103 

ceives  its  principal  charm  from  the  grace  and  gentle- 
ness of  their  manners.  In  stature  they  are  above  the 
middle  height,  and  of  delicate  and  slender  proportions. 
Their  long  black  hair  descends  to  the  earth.  Their 
teeth  embellish  with  the  whiteness  of  alabaster,  ver- 
million  lips,  which  perpetually  smile  with  a  bewitching 
air.  The  constant  use  which  they  make  of  the  most 
exquisite  perfumes,  gives  a  freshness  and  brilliancy  to 
their  complexions  possessed  by  no  other  Mohammedan 
women.  Their  walking,  their  dancing,  their  every 
movement,  is  distinguished  by  a  graceful  softness,  an 
ease,  a  lightness,  which  surpasses  all  their  other 
charms.  Their  conversation  is  lively  and  sensible,  and 
their  fine  intellects  are  constantly  displayed  in  brilliant 
wit  or  judicious  sentiments  " 

The  dress  of  these  elegant  females  was  composed, 
as  that  of  the  Turkish  women  still  is,  of  a  long  tunic  of 
linen  confined  by  a  cincture,  of  a  doliman  or  Turkish 
dress  with  close  sleeves,  of  wide  trousers  and  Morocco 
slippers.  The  materials  of  their  clothing  were  of  the 
finest  fabric,  and  were  usually  woven  in  stripes:  they 
were  embroidered  with  gold  and  silver,  and  profusely 
spangled  with  jewels.  Their  waving  tresses  floated 
over  their  shoulders ;  and  a  small  cap,  adorned  with  the 
richest  gems,  supported  an  embroidered  veil,  which  fell 
nearly  to  the  feet.  The  men  were  clothed  in  a  similar 
manner:  with  them  were  carried  in  the  girdle  the  purse, 
the  handkerchief,  and  the  poniard :  a  white,  and  some- 
times a  colored,  turban  covered  the  head ;  and  over  the 
Turkish  doliman  they  wore  in  summer  a  wide  flowing 
white  robe,  and  in  winter  the  albornos  or  African  man- 
tle. The  only  change  made  in  their  dress  by  the  Moor- 
ish cavaliers  when  preparing  for  battle  was  the  addi- 


104  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

tion  of  a  coat  of  mail,  and  an  iron  lining  within  their 
turbans. 

It  was  the  custom  of  the  Grenadians  to  repair  every 
year,  during  the  autumn,  to  the  charming  villas  by 
which  the  city  was  surrounded.  There  they  yielded 
themselves  up  to  the  pursuit  of  pleasure.  The  chase 
and  the  dance,  music  and  feasting,  occupied  every  hour. 

The  manners  of  those  who  participated  in  these 
national  dances  were  in  a  high  degree  unreserved,  as 
was  the  language  of  the  songs  and  ballads  in  which 
they  joined.  Were  it  not  for  the  contradictions  in  the 
human  character,  one  might  be  surprised  at  this  want 
of  delicacy  in  a  people  who  were  capable  of  so  much 
refinement  of  feeling.  But,  in  general,  nations  of  Ori- 
ental origin  possess  but  little  reserve  in  their  manners : 
they  have  more  of  passion  than  sentiment,  more  of 
jealousy  than  delicacy  in  their  haughty  and  excitable 
natures. 

In  giving  these  details,  we  have  perhaps  trespassed 
too  long  on  the  period  of  calm  repose  enjoyed  by  the 
kingdom  of  Grenada  during  the  reign  of  Abouhadjad. 
That  excellent  sovereign,  after  having  filled  the  throne 
for  thirteen  years,  left  his  flourishing  dominions  to  his 
son  Joseph,  who  succeeded  him  without  opposition, 
A.  D.  1392,  Heg.  795. 

Joseph  II.  was  desirous,  in  imitation  of  the  course 
pursued  by  his  father,  of  maintaining  the  truce  with  the 
Christians.  It  was,  however,  soon  disturbed  by  a 
fanatical  hermit,  who  persuaded  the  Grand-master  of 
Alcantara,  Martin  de  Barbuda,  a  Portuguese,  that  he 
had  been  selected  by  Heaven  as  the  chosen  instrument 
for  expelling  the  infidels  from  Spain.  He  promised  the 
credulous  Martin,  in  the  name  of  God,  that  he  should 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  105 

succeed  in  conquering  the  enemies  of  the  Cross,  and  in 
carrying  the  city  of  Grenada  by  assault,  without  the 
loss  of  a  single  soldier.  The  infatuated  grand-master, 
convinced  of  the  certainty  of  the  fulfilment  of  this 
promise,  immediately  sent  ambassadors  to  Joseph,  with 
orders  to  declare  to  that  sovereign,  in  his  name,  that, 
since  the  religion  of  Mohammed  was  false  and  de- 
testable, and  that  of  Jesus  Christ  the  only  true  and 
saving  faith,  he,  Martin  de  Barbuda,  defied  the  King  of 
Grenada  to  a  combat  of  two  hundred  Mussulmans 
against  one  hundred  Christians,  upon  condition  that 
the  vanquished  nation  should  instantly  adopt  the  faith 
of  the  conquerors. 

The  reception  these  ambassadors  met  with  may  be 
easily  imagined.  Joseph  could  scarcely  restrain  the  in- 
dignation of  his  people.  The  envoys,  driven  con- 
temptuously away,  returned  to  the  presence  of  the 
grand-master,  who,  surprised  at  receiving  no  response 
to  his  proposal,  soon  assembled  a  thousand  foot-sol- 
diers and  three  hundred  cavaliers,  and  hastened  to  the 
conquest  of  Grenada  under  the  guidance  of  the 
hetic  hermk. 

The  King  of  Castile,  Henry  III.,  who  desired  to 
preserve  peace  with  the  followers  of  the  Prophet  at  the 
commencement  of  a  reign  during  which  his  own  domin- 
ions were  but  ill  at  rest,  was  no  sooner  informed  of  the 
enterprise  of  Barbuda,  than  he  sent  him  positive  orders 
not  to  cross  the  frontiers ;  but  that  dignitary  replying 
that  he  ought  to  obey  the  commands  of  J  ehovah  rather 
than  those  of  any  earthly  master,  proceeded  on  his  way. 
The  governors  of  the  different  cities  through  which  he 
passed  on  his  route  endeavored,  though  vainly,  to 
arrest  his  progress;  but  the  people  overwhelmed  him 


106  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

with  homage,  and  everywhere  added  to  the  number  of 
his  forces. 

The  army  of  the  grand-master  amounted  to  six 
thousand  men,  when,  in  A.  D.  1394,  Heg.  798,  he  en- 
tered the  country  which  his  folly  taught  him  to  regard 
as  already  in  his  possession.  In  attacking  the  first 
castle  at  which  he  arrived,  three  soldiers  were  killed  and 
their  fanatical  commander  himself  wounded.  Surprised 
beyond  measure  at  beholding  his  own  blood  flow  and 
three  soldiers  fall,  he  summoned  the  anchorite  into  his 
presence,  and  sedately  demanded  what  this  meant,  after 
his  express  promise  that  not  a  single  champion  of  the  true 
faith  should  perish.  The  fanatic  replied,  that  the  word 
he  had  pledged  extended  only  to  regular  battles.  Bar- 
buda complained  no  more,  and  presently  preceived  the 
approach  of  a  Moorish  army  composed  of  fifty  thou- 
sand men.  The  conflict  soon  commenced :  the  grand- 
master and  his  three  hundred  mounted  followers  per- 
ished in  the  field,  after  having  performed  prodigies  of 
valor.  The  remainder  of  the  Spanish  army  were  either 
taken  prisoners  or  put  to  flight;  and  the  silence  of: 
torians  respecting  the  hermit,  leads  to  the  opinionj 
he  was  not  among  the  last  to  seek  safety  at  a  di« 
from  the  scene  of  action. 

This  foolish  enterprise  did  not  interrupt  the  good 
understanding  subsisting  between  the  two  nations. 
The  King  of  Castile  disavowed  all  approval  of  the  con- 
duct of  Martin  de  Barbuda,  and  Joseph  long  continued 
to  reign  with  honor  and  tranquillity.  But  he  was  at  last 
poisoned,  it  is  said,  by  a  magnificent  robe  which  he  re- 
ceived from  his  secret  enemy,  the  King  of  Fez,  through 
the  ambassadors  of  that  sovereign.  Historians  assert 
that  this  garment  was  impregnated  with  a  terrible 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  107 

poison,  which  caused  the  death  of  the  unfortunate 
Joseph  by  the  most  horrible  torments.  The  peculiar 
effect  it  produced  was  that  of  detaching  the  flesh  from 
the  bones,  the  misery  of  the  wretched  sufferer  endur- 
ing for  the  protracted  period  of  thirty  days. 

Mohammed  IX.,  the  second  son  of  this  hapless 
monarch,  who,  even  during  the  lifetime  of  his  father, 
had  excited  commotions  in  the  realm,  usurped  the 
crown  that  of  right  belonged  to  his  elder  brother 
Joseph,  whom  he  caused  to  be  confined  in  prison. 

Mohammed  was  courageous  and  possessed  some 
talents  for  war.  Allied  with  the  King  of  Tunis,  who 
joined  his  fleet  with  that  of  Grenada,  he  broke  the  truce 
maintained  with  Castile  during  the  two  preceding 
reigns,  and  at  first  gained  some  advantages  over  his 
adversaries;  but  the  Infant  Don  Ferdinand,  the  uncle 
and  tutor  of  the  young  king  John  II.,  was  not  long  in 
avenging  the  cause  of  Spain. 

Mohammed  IX.  died  in  the  year  1408,  Heg.  811. 
When  the  expiring  monarch  became  conscious  that  his 
end  was  rapidly  approaching,  desirous  of  securing  the 
crown  to  his  son,  he  sent  one  of  his  principal  officers  to 
the  prison  of  his  brother  Joseph,  with  orders  to  cut  off 
the  head  of  the  royal  occupant.  The  officer  found  Jos- 
eph engaged  in  a  game  of  chess  with  an  iman  (Moham- 
medan priest)  :  he  sorrowfully  announced  the  mourn- 
ful commission  with  which  he  was  charged.  The  prince, 
without  manifesting  any  emotion  at  the  communication, 
only  demanded  time  to  conclude  his  game ;  and  the  officer 
could  not  refuse  this  slight  favor.  While  the  philosoph- 
ical Mussulman  continued  to  play,  a  second  messenger 
arrived,  bearing  the  news  of  the  death  of  the  usurper, 


108  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

and  of  the  proclamation  of  Joseph  as  his  successor  to 
the  throne. 

The  people  of  Grenada  were  happy  under  the  rule 
of  the  good  King  Joseph  III.  So  far  was  he  from 
avenging  himself  upon  those  who  had  aided  his  brother 
in  depriving  him  of  his  rights,  that  he  lavished  favors 
and  offices  on  them,  and  educated  the  son  of  Moham- 
med in  the  same  manner  as  his  own  children.  When 
his  councillors  blamed  him  for  a  degree  of  indulgence 
which  they  regarded  as  hazardous,  "Allow  me,"  replied 
the  sovereign,  "to  deprive  my  enemies  of  all  excuse  for 
having  preferred  my  younger  brother  to  me !" 

This  excellent  prince  was  often  obliged  to  take  arms 
against  the  Christians.  He  was  so  unfortunate  as  to 
lose  some  cities,  but  he  preserved  the  respect  and  affec- 
tion of  his  subjects,  and  died  lamented  by  the  whole 
kingdom,  after  a  reign  of  fifteen  years,  A.  D.  1423, 
Heg.  927. 

After  the  death  of  Joseph  the  state  was  distracted 
by  civil  wars.  Mohammed  X.  Abenazar,  or  the  Left- 
handed,  the  son  and  successor  of  that  benevolent  king, 
was  banished  from  the  throne  by  Mohammed  XL,  El 
Zitgair,  or  the  Little,  who  preserved  his  ill-gotten 
power  but  two  years.  The  Abencerrages,  a  powerful 
tribe  at  Grenada,  re-established  Mohammed  the  Left- 
handed  in  his  former  place,  and  his  competitor  per- 
ished on  the  scaffold. 

About  four  years  after  the  death  of  Joseph,  the 
Spaniards  renewed  their  inroads  into  Grenada,  and 
carried  fire  and  sword  to  the  very  gates  of  the  capital. 
All  the  neighboring  fields  were  devastated ;  the  crops 
were  burned  and  the  villages  destroyed.  John  II.,  who 
then  reigned  in  Castile,  wishing  to  add  to  the  miseries 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  109 

he  had  already  occasioned  these  unhappy  people  the 
still  greater  misfortune  of  civil  war,  instigated  the 
proclamation  at  Grenada  of  a  certain  Joseph  Alhamar, 
a  grandson  of  that  Mohammed  the  Red,  so  basely 
assassinated  at  Seville  by  Peter  the  Cruel. 

All  the  discontented  spirits  in  the  kingdom  joined 
the  faction  of  Joseph  Alhamar ;  and  the  Zegris,  a  pow- 
erful tribe,  who  were  at  enmity  with  the  Abencerrages, 
lent  their  aid  to  the  usurper.  Mohammed  Abenazar 
was  again  driven  from  the  capital,  A.  D.  1432,  Heg. 
836,  and  Joseph  IV.  Alhamar  possessed  his  dominions 
six  months.  At  the  termination  of  that  time  he  ex- 
pired. 

Mohammed  the  Left-handed  once  more  resumed  his 
royal  seat ;  but,  after  thirteen  years  of  misfortune,  this 
unhappy  prince  was  again  deposed  for  the  third  time, 
and  imprisoned  by  one  of  his  nephews,  named  Moham- 
med XII.  the  Osmin'  who  was  himself  afterward  de- 
throned by  his  own  brother  Ismael,  and  ended  his  days 
in  the  same  dungeon  in  which  his  uncle  Mohammed 
Abenazar  had  languished. 

All  these  revolutions  did  not  prevent  the  Christian 
and  Moorish  governors  who  commanded  on  their  re- 
spective frontiers  from  making  incessant  irruptions  into 
the  enemy's  country.  Sometimes  a  little  troop  of  cav- 
alry or  infantry  surprised  a  village,  massacred  the  in- 
habitants, pillaged  their  houses,  and  carried  away  their 
flocks.  Sometimes  an  army  suddenly  appeared  in  a 
fertile  plain,  devastated  the  fields,  uprooted  the  vines, 
felled  the  trees,  besieged  and  took  some  town  or  fort- 
ress, and  retired  with  their  booty.  This  kind  of  war- 
fare was  ruinous,  most  of  all,  to  the  unfortunate  cul- 
tivator of  the  soil.  The  Grenadian  dominions  suffered 


110  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

so  much  during  the  reign  of  Ismael  II.,  that  the  king 
was  compelled  to  cause  immense  forests  to  be  cleared 
for  the  support  of  his  capital,  which  then  drew  scarcely 
any  supplies  from  the  vast  and  fertile  vega  which  had 
been  so  often  desolated  by  the  Spaniards. 

Ismael  II.  left  the  crown  to  his  son  Mulei-Hassem, 
a  young  and  highly  courageous  prince,  who,  profiting 
by  the  disastrous  condition  of  Castile  under  the  deplor- 
able reign  of  Henry  IV.  the  Impotent,  carried  his  arms 
into  the  center  of  Andalusia.  The  success  that  marked 
the  commencement  of  the  reign  of  this  sovereign,  to- 
gether with  his  talents  and  warlike  ardor,  tempted  the 
Moors  to  believe  that  they  might  yet  recover  their 
former  greatness.  But  the  occurrence  at  this  juncture 
of  a  great  and  unlooked-for  event,  arrested  the  vic- 
torious progress  of  Mulei-Hassam,  and  prepared  the 
way  for  the  total  ruin  of  his  kingdom. 

Isabella  of  Castile,  the  sister  of  Henry  the  Impotent, 
notwithstanding  the  opposition  of  her  brother  and  the 
intervention  of  almost  insurmountable  obstacles, 
espoused  Ferdinand  the  Catholic,  the  king  of  Sicily, 
and  heir  presumptive  of  the  kingdom  of  Aragon.  This 
marriage,  by  uniting  the  two  most  powerful  monarchs 
of  Spain,  gave  a  fatal  blow  to  the  prosperity  of  the 
Moors,  which  they  had  been  able  to  maintain,  even  in 
the  degree  in  which  it  now  existed,  only  through  the 
divisions  which  had  hitherto  perpetually  prevailed 
among  their  Christian  opponents. 

Either  of  the  two  enemies,  now  unitedly  arrayed 
against  them,  had  been  singly  sufficient  to  overwhelm 
the  Mussulmans.  Ferdinand  was  alike  politic,  able, 
and  adroit.  He  was  pliant,  and,  at  the  same  time,  firm ; 
cautious  to  a  degree  sometimes  amounting  to  pusil- 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  111 

lanimity;  cunning  even  to  falsehood,  and  endowed  in 
an  extraordinary  degree  with  the  power  of  discerning 
at  a  single  glance  all  the  various  means  of  attaining  a 
particular  end.  Isabella  was  of  a  prouder  and  more 
noble  nature;  endowed  with  heroic  courage  and  the 
most  unyielding  constancy  of  purpose,  she  was  admir- 
ably qualified  for  the  pursuit  and  accomplishment  of 
any  enterprise  to  which  she  might  direct  the  energies 
of  her  powerful  mind.  The  exalted  endowments  of  one 
of  these  royal  personages  have  been  employed  to  en- 
noble the  character  of  the  other.  Ferdinand  often 
played  the  part  of  a  weak,  perfidious  woman,  nego- 
tiating only  to  deceive ;  whereas  Isabella  was  always 
the  high-souled  sovereign,  advancing  openly  to  her  pur- 
poses, and  marching  directly  to  honorable  conflict  and 
generous  triumph. 

No  sooner  had  these  distinguished  individuals  se- 
cured possession  of  their  respective  kingdoms,  sup- 
pressed all  domestic  disturbances,  and  effected  peaceful 
arrangements  with  foreign  powers,  than  they  mutually 
resolved  to  concentrate  all  their  efforts  for  the  annihila- 
tion of  the  Mohammedan  dominion  in  Spain. 

This  century  seemed  destined  to  be  marked  by  the 
glory  of  the  Spaniards.  In  addition  to  the  immense 
advantages  afforded  them  by  the  union  of  their  forces, 
Ferdinand  and  Isabella  were  surrounded  by  the  wisest 
and  most  experienced  advisers.  The  celebrated  Car- 
dinal Ximenes,  at  one  time  a  simple  monk,  was  now  at 
the  head  of  their  councils ;  and  that  able  minister  "led," 
as  he  himself  averred,  "all  Spain  by  his  girdle!"  The 
civil  wars  with  which  the  Peninsula  had  been  so  long 
disturbed,  had  created  among  the  Christian  powers  a 
host  of  brave  soldiers  and  excellent  commanders. 


X13  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

Among  the  latter  were  particularly  distinguished  the 
Count  de  Cabra,  the  Marquis  of  Cadiz,  and  the  famous 
Gonzalvo  of  Cordova,  whose  just  claim  to  the  surname 
of  the  Great  Captain,  given  him  by  his  countrymen,  the 
lapse  of  time  has  only  served  to  confirm.  The  public 
treasury,  which  had  been  exhausted  by  the  lavish 
prodigality  of  Henry,  was  soon  replenished  by  the 
rigid  economy  of  Isabella,  aided  by  a  bull  from  the 
pope,  permitting  the  royal  appropriation  of  the  eccle- 
siastical revenues.  The  troops  were  numerous  and  ad- 
mirably disciplined,  and  the  emulation  which  existed 
between  the  Castilians  and  Aragonians  redoubled  the 
valor  of  both.  Everything,  in  short,  prognosticated  the 
downfall  of  the  last  remaining  throne  of  the  Moors.  • 

Its  royal  champion,  Mulei-Hassem,  was  not  dis- 
mayed, however,  even  by  such  an  accumulation  of  dan- 
ger. He  was  the  first  to  break  the  truce,  by  taking 
forcible  possession  of  the  city  of  Zahra,  A.  D.  1481, 
Heg.  886.  Ferdinand  despatched  ambassadors  to  the 
Moslem  court  to  complain  of  this  breach  of  faith ;  with 
orders,  at  the  same  time,  to  demand  the  ancient  tribute 
which  had  been  paid  by  the  kings  of  Grenada  to  the 
sovereigns  of  Castile. 

"I  know,"  replied  Mulei-Hassem,  when  the  envoys 
of  the  Spanish  prince  had  delivered  their  message,  "I 
know  that  some  of  my  predecessors  rendered  you  trib- 
ute in  pieces  of  gold ;  but  this  is  the  only  metal  now 
coined  in  the  national  mint  of  Grenada !"  And,  as  he 
spoke,  the  stern  and  haughty  monarch  presented  the 
head  of  his  lance  to  the  Spanish  ambassadors. 

The  army  of  Ferdinand  first  marched  upon  Alha- 
mar,  a  very  strong  fortress  in  the  neighborhood  of 
Grenada,  and  particularly  famous  for  the  magnificent 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  113 

baths  with  which  it  had  been  embellished  by  the  Moor- 
ish kings.  The  place  was  taken  by  surprise,  and  thus 
a  war  was  lighted  up  that  was  destined  to  be  extin- 
guished only  with  the  last  expiring  sigh  of  Grenada. 

Victory  seemed  at  first  to  be  equally  poised  between 
the  two  contending  powers.  The  King  of  Grenada  pos- 
sessed ample  resources  in  troops,  artillery,  and  treasure. 
He  might  long  have  maintained  the  contest,  but  for  an 
act  of  imprudence  which  precipitated  him  into  an  abyss 
of  misfortune  from  which  he  was  never  afterward  able 
to  extricate  himself. 

The  wife  of  Mulei-Hassem,  named  Aixa,  belonged, 
before  her  marriage  with  the  king,  to  one  of  the  most 
important  of  the  Grenadian  tribes.  The  offspring  of 
this  marriage  was  a  son  named  Boabdil,  whose  right 
it  was  to  succeed  to  his  father's  throne.  But  the  reck- 
less Mulei  repudiated  his  wife  at  the  instance  of  a 
Christian  slave,  of  whom  he  became  enamored,  and 
who  governed  the  doting  monarch  at  will.  This  act  of 
cruelty  and  injustice  was  the  signal  for  civil  war.  The 
injured  Aixa,  in  concert  with  her  son,  excited  her  rela- 
tives and  friends,  and  a  large  number  of  the  inhabitants 
of  the  capital,  to  throw  off  their  allegiance  to  their  sov- 
ereign. 

Mulei-Hassem  was  eventually  driven  from  the  city, 
and  Boabdil  assumed  the  title  of  king.  Thus  father  and 
son  were  involved  in  a  contest  for  the  possession  of  a 
crown,  of  which  Ferdinand  was  seeking  to  deprive 
them  both. 

To  add  to  the  misfortunes  which  were  already  fast 
crushing  this  distracted  and  miserable  country  beneath 
their  weight,  another  aspirant  to  the  throne  presented 
himself,  in  the  person  of  a  brother  of  Mulei-Hassem 

M.  •{  H.— XXXIV— « 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

named  Zagel.  This  prince,  at  the  head  of  a  band  of 
Moorish  adventurers,  had  succeeded  in  obtaining  some 
important  advantages  over  the  Spaniards  in  the  defiles 
of  Malaga,  A.  D.  1483,  Heg.  888. 

His  achievements  having  won  for  him  the  hearts 
of  his  countrymen,  Zagel  now  conceived  the  design  of 
dethroning  his  brother  and  nephew,  and  of  appropria- 
ting the  dominions  of  both  to  himself.  Thus  a  third 
faction  arose  to  increase  the  dissensions  of  the  state. 

Boabdil  still  held  insecure  possession  of  the  capital ; 
and,  desirous  of  attempting  some  action,  the  brilliancy 
of  which  would  reanimate  the  hopes  and  confidence  of 
a  party  that  was  ready  to  abandon  him,  he  sallied  forth 
at  the  head  of  a  small  force,  with  the  intention  of  sur- 
prising Lucena,  a  city  belonging  to  the  Castilians. 

But  the  ill-fated  Boabdil  was  made  a  prisoner  in  this 
expedition. 

He  was  the  first  Moorish  king  who  had  ever  been  a 
captive  to  the  Spaniards.  Ferdinand  lavished. on  him 
the  attentions  due  to  misfortune,  and  caused  him  to  be 
conducted  to  Cordova,  attended  by  an  escort. 

The  old  king,  Mulei-Hassem,  seized  this  oppor- 
tunity to  repossess  himself  of  the  crown  of  which  his 
rebellious  son  had  deprived  him,  and,  in  spite  of  the 
party  of  Zagel,  he  again  became  master  of  his  capital. 
But  the  restored  monarch  could  oppose  but  a  feeble 
resistance  to  the  progress  of  the  Spaniards,  who  were 
rapidly  reducing  his  cities  and  advancing  nearer  to  his 
devoted  capital.  Within  the  walls  of  that  city  the 
wretched  inhabitants  were  madly  warring  against  one 
another,  as  if  unconscious  of  the  destruction  that  was 
fast  approaching  them  from  without.  To  increase  the 
sanguinary  feuds  which  already  so  surely  presaged 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  115 

their  destruction,  the  Catholic  sovereigns  had  become 
the  allies  of  the  captive  Boabdil,  engaging  to  assist  him 
in  his  efforts  against  his  father  on  condition  that  he 
should  pay  them  a  tribute  of  twelve  thousand  crowns 
of  gold,  acknowledge  himself  their  vassal,  and  deliver 
certain  strong  places  into  their  hands.  The  base 
Boabdil  acceded  to  everything;  and,  aided  by  the  politic 
Spanish  princes,  hastened  again  to  take  arms  against 
his  father. 

The  kingdom  of  Grenada  was  now  converted  into 
one  wide  field  of  carnage,  where  Mulei-Hassem,  Boab- 
dil, and  Zagel  were  furiously  contending  for  the  mourn- 
ful relics  of  their  country. 

The  Spaniards,  in  the  meantime,  marched  rapidly 
from  one  conquest  to  another,  sometimes  under  pretext 
of  sustaining  their  ally  Boabdil,  and  often  in  open 
defiance  of  the  treaty  they  had  formed  with  that  prince  ; 
but  always  carefully  feeding  the  fire  of  discord,  while 
they  were  despoiling  each  of  the  three  rival  parties,  and 
leaving  to  the  vanquished  inhabitants  their  laws,  their 
customs,  and  the^free  exercise  of  their  religion. 

In  the  midst  of  these  frightful  scenes  of  calamity 
and  crime,  old  Mulei-Hassem  died,  either  worn  out  by 
grief  and  misfortune,  or  through  the  agency  of  his  am- 
bitious brother.  This  event  occurred  A.  D.  1485, 
Heg.  890. 

Ferdinand  had  now  rendered  himself  master  of  all 
the  western  part  of  the  kingdom  of  Grenada,  and  Boab- 
dil agreed  to  divide  with  Zagel  the  remnant  of  this 
desolated  state.  The  city  of  Grenada  was  retained  by 
Boabdil,  while  Gaudix  and  Almeria  fell  to  the  share  of 
Zagel.  The  war  was  not  the  less  vigorously  presecuted 
in  consequence  of  this  arrangement;  and  the  unprin- 


116  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

cipled  Zagel,  doubting  his  ability  long  to  retain  the 
cities  in  his  possession,  sold  them  to  King  Ferdinand 
in  consideration  of  an  annual  pension. 

By  virtue  of  this  treaty,  the  Catholic  sovereigns 
took  possession  of  the  purchased  cities ;  and  the  traitor 
Zagel  even  lent  the  aid  of  his  arms  to  the  Christian 
army,  the  more  speedily  to  overthrow  the  royal  power 
of  his  nephew,  and  thereby  terminate  the  existence  of 
his  expiring  country. 

All  that  now  remained  to  the  Mussulmans  was  the 
single  city  of  Grenada.  There  Boabdil  still  reigned; 
and,  exasperated  by  misfortune,  he  vented  his  rage  and 
despair  in  acts  of  barbarous  cruelty  towards  its 
wretched  inhabitants. 

Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  disregarding  the  conditions 
of  their  pretended  alliance  with  this  now  powerless 
prince,  summoned  him  to  surrender  his  capital,  in  com- 
pliance, as  they  said,  with  the  terms  of  a  secret  treaty, 
which  they  affirmed  had  been  concluded  between  them. 
Boabdil  protested  against  this  perfidious  conduct.  But 
there  was  no  time  allowed  for  complaint :  he  must  suc- 
cessfully defend  himself,  or  cease  to  reign.  The  Moor- 
ish prince  adopted,  therefore,  to  say  the  least,  the  most 
heroic  alternative;  and  resolved  to  defend  to  the  last 
what  remained  to  him  of  his  once  beautiful  and  flour- 
ishing country. 

The  Spanish  sovereign,  at  the  head  of  an  army  of 
sixty  thousand  men,  the  flower  and  chivalry  of  the 
united  kingdoms  of  Castile  and  Aragon,  laid  siege  to 
Grenada  on  the  9th  of  May,  1491,  and  in  the  897th  year 
of  the  Hegira. 

This  great  city,  as  has  been  already  mentioned,  was 
defended  by  strong  ramparts,  flanked  by  a  multitude  of 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  117 

towers,  and  by  numerous  other  fortifications,  built  one 
above  the  other.  Notwithstanding  the  civil  wars 
which  had  inundated  it  with  blood,  Grenada  still  en- 
closed within  its  walls  more  than  two  hundred  thou- 
sand inhabitants.  Every  brave  Moorish  cavalier  who 
still  remained  true  to  his  country,  its  religion,  and  its 
laws,  had  here  taken  refuge.  Despair  redoubled  their 
strength  in  this  last  desperate  struggle ;  and  had  these 
fierce  and  intrepid  warriors  been  guided  by  a  more 
worthy  chief  than  Boabdil,  their  noble  constancy  might 
still  have  saved  them;  but  this  weak  and  ferocious 
monarch  hesitated  not,  on  the  slightest  suspicion,  to 
consign  his  most  faithful  defenders  to  the  axe  of  the 
executioner.  Thus  he  became  daily  more  and  more 
an  object  of  hatred  and  contempt  to  the  Grenadians, 
by  whom,  he  was  surnamed  Zogoybi,  that  is  to  say,  the 
Little  King.  The  different  tribes  now  grew  dissatisfied 
and  dispirited,  especially  the  numerous  and  powerful 
tribe  of  the  Abencerrages.  The  alfaquis  and  the  imans, 
also,  loudly  predicted  the  approaching  downfall  of  the 
Moorish  empire ;  and  nothing  upheld  the  sinking  cour- 
age of  the  people  against  the  pressure  of  a  foreign  foe 
and  the  tyranny  of  their  own  rulers  but  their  uncon- 
querable horror  of  the  Spanish  3roke. 

The  Catholic  soldiers,  on  the  other  hand,  elated  by 
their  past  success,  regarded  themselves  as  invincible, 
and  never  for  a  moment  doubted  the  certainty  of  their 
triumph.  They  were  commanded,  also,  by  leaders  to 
whom  they  were  devotedly  attached :  Ponce  de  Leon, 
marquis  of  Cadiz,  Henry  de  Guzman,  duke  of  Medina, 
Mendoza,  Aguillar,  Villena,  and  Gonzalvo  of  Cordova, 
together  with  many  other  famous  captains,  accom- 
panied their  victorious  king.  Isabella,  too,  whose  vir- 


118  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

tues  excited  the  highest  respect,  and  whose  affability 
and  grace  won  for  her  the  affectionate  regard  of  all, 
had  repaired  to  the  camp  of  her  husband  with  the  In- 
fant and  the  Infantas,  and  attended  by  the  most  bril- 
liant court  in  Europe.  This  politic  princess,  though 
naturally  grave  and  serious,  wisely  accommodated  her- 
self to  the  existing  circumstances.  She  mingled  fetes 
and  amusements  with  warlike  toil :  jousts  and  tourna- 
ments delighted  at  intervals  the  war-worn  soldiery; 
and  dances,  games,  and  illuminations  filled  up  the  deli- 
cious summer  evenings. 

Queen  Isabella  was  the  animating  genius  that  di- 
rected everything;  a  gracious  word  from  her  was  a 
sufficient  recompense  for  the  most  gallant  achieve- 
ment ;  and  her  look  alone  had  power  to  transform  the 
meanest  soldier  into  a  hero. 

Abundance  reigned  in  the  Christian  camp ;  while 
joy  and  hope  animated  every  heart.  But  within  the 
beleaguered  city,  mutual  distrust,  universal  conster- 
nation, and  the  prospect  of  inevitable  destruction,  had 
dampened  the  courage  and  almost  annihilated  the 
hopes  of  the  wretched  inhabitants. 

The  siege,  nevertheless,  lasted  for  nine  months. 
The  cautious  commander  of  the  Christian  army  did 
not  attempt  to  carry  by  assault  a  place  so  admirably 
fortified.  After  having  laid  waste  the  environs,  there- 
fore, he  waited  patiently  until  famine  should  deliver  the 
city  into  his  hands.  Satisfied  with  battering  the  ram- 
parts and  repelling  the  frequent  sorties  of  the  Moors, 
he  never  engaged  in  any  decisive  action,  but  daily 
hemmed  in  more  closely  the  chafed  lion  that  could  not 
now  escape  his  toils. 

Accident  one  night  set  fire  to  the  pavilion  of  Isa- 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  .      119 

bella,  and  the  spreading  conflagration  consumed  every 
tent  in  the  camp.  But  Boabdil  derived  no  advantage 
from  this  disaster.  The  queen  directed  that  a  city 
should  supply  the  place  of  the  ruined  camp,  to  con- 
vince the  enemies  of  the  cross  that  the  siege  would 
never  be  raised  until  Grenada  should  come  into  pos- 
session of  the  conquering  Spaniards.  This  great  and 
extraordinary  design,  so  worthy  the  genius  of  Isa- 
bella, was  executed  in  eighty  days.  The  Christian 
camp  thus  became  a  walled  city;  and  Santa  Fe  still 
exists  as  a  monument  of  the  piety  and  perseverance  of 
the  heroic  Queen  of  Castile. 

At  last,  oppressed  by  famine,  less  frequently  suc- 
cessful than  at  first  in  the  partial  engagements  that 
were  constantly  taking  place  under  the  walls,  and 
abandoned  by  Africa,  from  which  there  was  no  at- 
tempts made  to  relieve  them,  the  Moors  now  felt  the 
necessity  of  a  surrender. 

Gonzalvo  of  Cordova  was  empowered  by  the  con- 
querors to  arrange  the  articles  of  capitulation.  These 
provided  that  the  people  of  Grenada  should  recognize 
Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  and  their  royal  successors,  as 
their  rightful  sovereigns ;  that  all  their  Christian  cap- 
tives should  be  released  without  ransom ;  that  the 
Moors  should  continue  to  be  governed  by  their  own 
laws;  should  retain  their  national  customs,  their 
judges,  half  the  number  of  their  mosques,  and  the  free 
exercise  of  their  faith ;  that  they  should  be  permitted 
either  to  keep  or  sell  their  property,  and  to'  retire  to 
Africa,  or  to  any  other  country  they  might  choose, 
while,  at  the  same  time,  they  should  not  be  compelled 
to  leave  their  native  land.  It  was  also  agreed  that 
Boabdil  should  have  assigned  to  him  a  rich  and  ample 


120  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

domain  in  the  Alpuxares,  of  which  he  should  possess 
the  entire  command. 

Such  were  the  terms  of  capitulation,  and  but  ill 
were  they  observed  by  the  Spaniards.  Boabdil  fulfilled 
his  part  of  the  stipulations  some  days  before  the  time 
specified,  in  consequence  of  being  informed  that  his 
people,  roused  by  the  representations  of  the  imans, 
wished  to  break  off  the  negotiations,  and  to  bury 
themselves  beneath  the  ruins  of  the  city  rather  than 
suffer  their  desolate  and  deserted  homes  to  be  pro- 
faned by  the  intruding  foot  of  the  spoiler. 

The  wretched  Moslem  prince  hastened  therefore 
to  deliver  the  keys  of  the  city,  and  of  the  fortresses 
of  the  Albazin  and  the  Alhambra,  into  the  hands  of 
Ferdinand. 

Entering  no  more,  after  this  mournful  ceremony, 
within  the  walls  where  he  no  longer  retained  any  au- 
thority, Boabdil  took  his  melancholy  journey,  accom- 
panied by  his  family  and  a  small  number  of  followers, 
to  the  petty  dominions  which  were  now  all  that  re- 
mained to  him  of  the  once  powerful  and  extensive 
empire  of  his  ancestors. 

When  the  cavalcade  reached  an  eminence  from 
which  the  towers  of  Grenada  might  still  be  discerned, 
the  wretched  exile  turned  his  last  sad  regards  upon  the 
distant  city,  amid  ill-suppressed  tears  and  groans. 
"You  do  well,"  said  Aixa,  his  mother,  "  to  weep  like  a 
woman  for  the  throne  you  could  not  defend  like  a  man! " 

But  the  now  powerless  Boabdil  could  not  long  en- 
dure existence  as  a  subject  in  a  country  where  he  had 
reigned  as  a  sovereign :  he  crossed  the  Mediterranean 
to  Africa,  and  there  he  ended  his  days  on  the  battle- 
field. 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  121 

Ferdinand  and  Isabella  made  their  public  entrance 
into  Grenada  on  the  1st  of  January,  1492,  through 
double  ranks  of  soldiers,  and  amid  the  thunder  of 
artillery.  The  city  seemed  deserted;  the  inhabitants 
fled  from  the  presence  of  the  conquerors,  and  con- 
cealed their  tears  and  their  despair  within  the  inner- 
most recesses  of  their  habitations. 

The  royal  victors  repaired  first  to  the  grand 
mosque,  which  was  consecrated  as  a  Christian  church, 
and  where  they  rendered  thanks  to  God  for  the  bril- 
liant success  that  had  crowned  their  arms.  While 
the  sovereigns  fulfilled  this  pious  duty,  the  Count  de 
Tendilla,  the  new  governor  of  Grenada,  elevated  the 
triumphant  cross,  and  the  standards  of  Castile  and  St. 
James,  on  the  highest  towers  of  the  Alhambra. 

Thus  fell  this  famous  city,  and  thus  perished  the 
power  of  the  Moors  of  Spain,  after  an  existence  of 
seven  hundred  and  eighty-two  years  from  the  first 
conquest  of  the  country  by  Tarik. 

It  may  now  be  proper  briefly  to  remark  upon  the 
principal  causes  of  the  extinction  of  the  national  inde- 
pendence of  the  kingdom  of  Grenada. 

The  first  of  these  arose  from  the  peculiar  character 
of  the  Moors :  from  that  spirit  of  inconstancy,  that  love 
of  novelty,  and  that  unceasing  inquietude,  which 
prompted  them  to  such  frequent  change  of  their  rulers ; 
which  multiplied  factions  among  them,  and  constantly 
convulsed  the  empire  with  internal  discords,  expending 
its  strength  and  power  in  dissensions  at  home,  and 
thus  leaving  it  defenceless  against  foreign  enemies. 
The  Moors  may  also  be  reproached  with  an  extrava- 
gant fondness  for  architectural  magnificence,  splendid 
fetes,  and  other  expensive  entertainments,  which  aided 


122  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

in  exhausting  the  national  treasury  at  times  when 
protracted  warfare  scarcely  ever  permitted  this  most 
fertile  region  of  the  earth  to  reproduce  the  crops  the 
Spaniards  had  destroyed.  But,  more  than  all,  they 
were  a  people  without  an  established  code  of  laws,  that 
only  permanent  basis  of  the  prosperity  of  nations. 
And  then,  too,  a  despotic  form  of  government,  which 
deprives  men  of  patriotism,  induced  each  individual  to 
regard  his  virtues  and  attainments  merely  as  afford- 
ing the  means  of  personal  consideration,  and  not, 
as  they  should  be  considered,  the  property  of  his 
country. 

These  grave  defects  in  the  national  character  of 
the  Moors  were  redeemed  by  many  excellent  qualities, 
which  even  the  Spaniards  admitted  them  to  possess. 
In  battle  they  were  no  less  brave  and  prudent  than 
their  Christian  antagonists,  though  inferior  in  skill  and 
discipline.  They  excelled  them,  however,  in  the  art  of 
attack.  Adversity  never  long  overwhelmed  them  ;  they 
saw  in  misfortune  the  will  of  Heaven,  and  without  a 
murmur  submitted  to  it.  Their  favorite  dogma  of 
fatalism  doubtless  contributed  to  this  result.  Fer- 
vently devoted  to  the  laws  of  Mohammed,  they  obeyed 
with  great  exactness  his  humane  injunctions  respect- 
ing almsgiving:  they  bestowed  on  the  poor  not  only 
food  and  money,  but  a  portion  of  their  grain,  fruit,  and 
flocks,  and  of  every  kind  of  merchandise.  In  the  towns 
and  throughout  the  country,  the  indigent  sick  were 
collected,  attended,  and  nursed  with  the  most  assiduous 
care.  Hospitality,  so  sacred  from  the  remotest  time 
among  the  Arabs,  was  not  less  carefully  observed 
among  the  people  of  Grenada,  who  seemed  to  take 
peculiar  pleasure  in  its  exercise.  The  following  touch- 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  123 

ing  anecdote  is  told  in  illustration  of  the  powerful  in- 
fluence of  this  principle.  A  stranger,  bathed  in  blood, 
sought  refuge  from  the  officers  of  justice  under  the 
roof  of  an  aged  Moor.  The  old  man  concealed  him  in 
his  house.  But  he  had  scarcely  done  so  before  a  guard 
arrived  to  demand  possession  of  the  murderer,  and,  at 
the  same  time  to  deliver  to  the  horror-stricken  Mus- 
sulman the  dead  body  of  his  son,  whom  the  stranger 
had  just  assassinated.  Still  the  aged  father  would  not 
give  up  his  guest.  When  the  guard,  however,  was 
gone,  he  entreated  the  assassin  to  leave  him.  "  Depart 
•from  he,"  he  cried,  "  that  I  may  be  at  liberty  to  pursue 
thee!" 

These  Moslems  were  but  little  known  to  the  his- 
torians by  whom  they  have  been  so  often  calumniated. 
Polished,  enthusiastic,  hospitable,  brave,  and  chival- 
rous, but  haughty,  passionate,  inconstant,  and  vindic- 
tive, their  unfortunate  fate  entitles  them,  at  least,  to 
compassion  and  sympathy,  while  their  virtues  may 
well  excite  respect  and  interest. 

After  their  final  defeat,  many  of  the  followers  of 
the  Prophet  retired  to  Africa.  Those  who  remained  in 
Grenada  suffered  greatly  from  the  persecution  and  op- 
pression to  which  they  were  subjected  by  their  new 
masters.  The  article  in  their  last  treaty  with  the  Span- 
iards, which  formally  ensured  their  religious  freedom, 
was  grossly  violated  by  the  Catholics,  who  compelled 
the  Mussulmans  to  abjure  their  national  faith  by  force, 
terror,  and  every  other  unworthy  means. 

At  last,  outraged  beyond  endurance  by  this  want  of 
good  faith,  and  wrought  to  desperation  by  the  cruelties 
they  were  compelled  to  endure,  in  the  year  1500  the 
(Moors  attempted  to  revolt  against  their  oppressors. 


124  THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN 

Their  efforts  were,  however,  unavailing :  Ferdinand 
marched  in  person  against  them,  repressed  by  force  of 
arms  the  struggles  of  a  people  whom  he  designated  as 
rebels,  and,  sword  in  hand,  administered  the  rite  of 
baptism  to  more  than  fifty  thousand  captive  Moslems. 

The  successors  of  Ferdinand,  Charles  V.  and  especi- 
ally Philip  II.,  continued  to  harass  the  Moors.  The  In- 
quisition was  established  in  the  city  of  Grenada,  and 
all  the  terrors  of  that  dreaded  institution  were  added  to 
gentler  means  for  the  conversion  of  the  infidels  to 
Christianity.  Their  children  were  taken  from  them  to 
be  educated  in  accordance  with  the  precepts  of  that 
religion  whose  Adorable  Founder  enjoined  peace, 
mercy,  and  forbearance  upon  his  followers,  and  for- 
bade the  practice  of  injustice  and  cruelty  in  every 
form. 

Yielding  to  the  promptings  of  despair,  this  crushed 
and  wretched  remnant  of  a  once  powerful  and  glorious 
nation  again  flew  to  arms  in  the  year  1569,  and  executed 
the  most  terrible  vengeance  upon  the  Catholic  priest- 
hood. Mohammed-ben-Ommah,  the  new  king  whom 
they  chose  to  direct  their  destinies,  and  who  was  said  to 
have  sprung  from  the  cherished  race  of  the  Ommiades, 
several  times  gave  battle  to  his  opponents  in  the  moun- 
tains of  the  Alpuxares,  where  he  sustained  the  cause  of 
his  injured  countrymen  for  the  space  of  two  years.  At 
the  end  of  that  time  he  was  assassinated  by  his  own 
people.  His  successor  shared  the  same  fate,  and  the 
Mussulmans  were  again  compelled  to  submit  to  a  yoke 
their  revolt  had  rendered  even  more  intolerable  than 
before. 

Finally,  King  Philip  III.  totally  banished  the  Moorg 
from  Spain.  The  depopulation  thus  produced  inflicted 


THE  MOORS  OF  SPAIN  125 

a  wound  upon  that  kingdom,  from  the  effects  of  which 
it  has  never  since  recovered. 

More  than  one  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  of  this 
persecuted  race  took  refuge  in  France,  where  Henry 
IV.  received  them  with  great  humanity.  A  small  num- 
ber also  concealed  themselves  in  the  recesses  of  the 
Alpuxares;  but  the  greatest  part  of  the  expatriated 
Islamites  sought  a  home  in  Africa.  There  their  de- 
scendants still  drag  out  a  miserable  existence  under 
the  despotic  rule  of  the  sovereigns  of  Morocco,  and 
unceasingly  pray  that  they  may  be  restored  to  their 
beloved  Grenada. 


A 

BRIEF  ACCOUNT 

OF  THE 

MOHAMMEDAN  EMPIRE 
CHAPTER  I. 

Extent  of  the  Arabian  Empire. — Causes  which  led  to  that  Extent. — Con- 
tinuance of  Mohammedanism. — Decay  of  the  Empire. — What  led 
to  it. — Spain  revolts  and  sets  up  a  separate  Caliph. — Africa. — Egypt.— 
Bagdad. — Fall  of  the  House  of  the  Abbassides. 

• 

THE  first  battle  in  which  the  Arabs  tried  their 
power  against  the  disciplined  forces  of  the 
Roman  empire  was  the  battle  of  Muta. 
Though  on  that  occasion  they  were  successful,  the 
most  sanguine  could  not  have  ventured  to  predict  that, 
before  the  close  of  a  century,  their  empire  would  be- 
come more  extensive  than  any  that  had  ever  before 
existed.  Yet  such  was  the  fact.  It  overthrew  the 
power  of  the  Romans,  and  rendered  the  successors  of 
the  Prophet  the  mightiest  and  most  absolute  sovereigns 
on  earth. 

Under  the  last  monarch  of  the  Ommiade  race,  the 
Arabian  empire,  excepting  only  an  obscure  part  of 
Africa,  of  little  account,  embraced  a  compact  territory 
equal  to  six  months'  march  of  a  caravan  in  length  and 
four  in  breadth,  with  innumerable  tributary  and  de- 
pendant states.  In  the  exercise  of  their  power,  the 

126 


CAUSE  OF  MOHAMMED'S  SUCCESS      127 

caliphs  were  fettered  neither  by  popular  rights,  the 
votes  of  a  senate,  nor  constitutional  laws:  the  Koran 
was  indeed,  their  professed  rule  of  action ;  but,  inas- 
much as  they  alone  were  its  interpreters,  their  will  was 
in  all  cases  law.  The  loss  of  Spain  to  the  empire  was 
more  than  made  up  by  the  conquests  in  India,  Tartary, 
and  European  Turkey.  Samarkand  and  Timbuctoo 
studied  with  equal  devotion  the  language  and  religion 
of  the  Koran,  and  at  the  temple  of  Mecca  the  Moor  and 
the  Indian  met  as  brother  pilgrims.  Throughout  the 
countries  west  of  the  Tigris,  the  language  of  Arabia 
became  the  vehicle  of  popular  intercourse ;  and,  al- 
though in  Persia,  Tartary,  and  Hindostan  the  native 
dialects  continued  in  common  use,  the  Arabic  was  also 
there  the  sacred  tongue. 

We  will  advert  to  some  of  the  causes  which  led  to 
this  astonishing  success.  The  leading  article  of  the 
Mohammedan  faith,  the  unity  of  God,  harmonized  with 
what  Jews  and  Christians  universally  believed.  Mo- 
hammed propounded  this  doctrine,  by  excluding  the 
Deity  of  Jesus  Christ,  so  as  to  fall  in  with  the  views 
of  the  greater  number  of  the  Christian  sectaries.  He 
moreover  enjoined  practices  which,  in  the  then  corrupt 
state  of  religion,  were  beginning  widely  to  prevail. 
To  the  untutored  mind  of  the  desert  wanderer,  his  doc- 
trine would  thus  possess  all  the  attractiveness  he  might 
have  heard  ascribed  to  Christianity,  while  his  being  of 
the  same  country  would  secure  for  him  the  greater 
attention.  Systems  in  which  truth  and  error  have  been 
combined  are  by  no  means  unwillingly  received,  es- 
pecially by  those  who  -are  already  superstitious  and 
fanatical,  and  such  was  pre-eminently  the  character  of 
the  Arabians.  Mohammed's  religious,  moral,  and  jurid- 


128  WARLIKE  CHARACTER  OF  THE  ARABS 

ical  system  was  in  general  accordance  with  Asiatic 
opinions;  it  provided  a  paradise  exactly  suited  to  the 
imagination  and  taste  of  the  Orientals;  and,  as  the 
superstitious  are  always  more  powerfully  influenced 
by  that  which  awakens  apprehension  and  appeals  to 
fear  than  by  what  enkindles  hope,  his  hell  contributed 
even  more  than  his  heaven  to  multiply  disciples. 

Still,  had  no  resort  been  had  to  arms,  the  Moham- 
medan faith  would  in  all  probability  have  been  confined 
to  the  deserts  of  Arabia.  The  whole  of  Asia  was  at 
that  time  in  a  state  of  unprecedented  military  inactiv- 
ity, and  opportunity  was  thus  afforded  for  the  success 
of  his  enterprise.  Empires  were  tottering  and  power- 
less ;  political  wisdom  had  almost  disappeared ;  and  to 
military  talents  and  courage  the  Arabs  alone  could 
make  any  pretensions.  Previous  contentions  between 
the  Persian  and  Byzantine  empires  had  entirely  de- 
stroyed what  little  remains  of  internal  vigor  those 
governments  might  otherwise  have  possessed.  Civil 
revolts,  tyranny,  extortion,  sensuality,  and  sloth,  had 
annihilated  the  ambition  of  universal  rule  which  the 
Greek  and  Roman  governments  had  once  cherished; 
and  their  provinces,  neglected  or  oppressed,  became  an 
easy  prey  to  the  Moslem  power. 

The  nations  were  the  more  rapidly  subdued,  since 
to  the  indomitable  ferocity  of  the  desert  wanderer  the 
Saracens  added  those  other  features  which  complete  a 
warlike  character.  They  despised  death,  and  were  self- 
denying  and  energetic  to  a  degree  far  beyond  the  sol- 
diers of  civilized  countries,  while  they  were  scarcely 
less  familiar  with  the  military  art.  The  lieutenants  of 
the  caliphs  soon  vied  with  the  Romans  generals  in 
skill;  and  it  is  by  no  means  difficult  to  explain  their 


FANATICISM  OF  THE  ARABS  129 

almost  uniform  superiority,  when  we  bear  in  mind  the 
character  of  the  armies  they  respectively  commanded. 
Terror,  moreover,  is  epidemic ;  and  a  force  already  suc- 
cessful commonly  finds  its  victorious  progress  greatly 
aided  by  the  prevailing  notion  of  its  prowess.  Thus  we 
have  witnessed,  in  the  wars  of  more  disciplined  troops, 
the  tremendous  effect  of  a  name  alone. 

It  may  be  added,  also,  that  the  Saracen  success  is 
greatly  attributable  to  that  ardent  and  impetuous  spirit 
of  religious  enthusiasm  with  which  they  fought.  They 
deemed  their  cause  the  cause  of  God ;  heaven,  they  were 
persuaded,  was  engaged  in  their  behalf;  every  one  who 
fell  in  their  wars  was  a  martyr;  and  cowardice  was 
tantamount  to  apostacy. 

The  religious  ardor  of  the  Crusaders,  in  the  eleventh 
and  twelfth  centuries,  to  exterminate  Mohammedan- 
ism, did  not  exceed,  if  it  even  equalled,  that  of  the 
Arab  soldiers  by  whom  that  system  had  been  origin- 
ally propagated.  Whatever  secular  \principles  and 
ambition  influenced  them,  they  took  credit  for  fight- 
ing in  the  support  of  truth  and  virtue.  The  sword  and 
the  Koran  were  equally  the  companions  and  the  instru- 
ments of  their  wars.  '  The  circumstance,"  says  Paley, 
in  his  admirable  exhibition  of  the  Evidences  of  Chris- 
tianity, "  that  Mohammed's  conquests  should  carry  his 
religion  along  with  them,  will  excite  little  surprise 
when  we  know  the  conditions  which  he  proposed  to 
the  vanquished :  death  or  conversion  was  the  only 
choice  offered  to  idolators.  To  the  Jews  and  Chris- 
tians was  left  the  somewhat  milder  alternative  of  sub- 
jection and  tribute  if  they  persisted  in  their  own  reli- 
gion, or  of  an  equal  participation  of  the  rights  and 

M.  of  H.— XXXIV— 9 


130  PERMANENCY  OF  THE  MOSLEM  FAITH 

liberties,  the  honors  and  privileges  of  the  faithful  if 
they  embraced  the  religion  of  their  conquerors." 

Literature,  in  the  days  of  Mohammed,  was  as  little 
regarded  as  was  pure  and  practical  Christianity.  His 
followers  everywhere  met  with  an  ignorant  and  easily- 
deluded  people.  Both  the  monuments  of  science  and 
the  means  of  freedom  had  been  abolished  by  the  bar- 
barians of  the  North.  Philosophy  and  the  liberal  arts 
found  no  patrons  among  indolent  and  luxurious  em- 
perors and  nobles.  Superstition,  therefore,  naturally 
took  possession  of  the  minds  of  men,  and,  as  neither 
fears  nor  hopes  were  moderated  by  knowledge,  idle, 
preposterous,  and  unnecessary  ceremonies  easily  ob- 
tained currency.  Mohammed  merely  changed  one  set 
of  ceremonies  for  another ;  and  in  this  there  was  little 
difficulty,  since,  in  the  a^nost  universal  darkness  of 
mankind,  terror  and  credulity  everywhere  prevailed. 
The  continuance  of  the  religion  of  Mohammed  in 
countries  after  the  Arab  dominion  over  them  had 
ceased,  may  be  also  easily  accounted  for.  "Everything 
in  Asia  is  a  matter  of  regulation ;  and  freedom  of 
opinion  being  but  little  permitted  or  encouraged  in 
the  despotic  governments  of  the  East,  Mohammedan- 
ism, when  once  received,  became  stationary.  The 
human  code  is  mingled  with  the  divine,  and  the  ideas 
of  change  and  profanation  are  inseparable.  As  the 
unsettling  of  the  political  and  social  fabric  might  en- 
\sue  from  a  change  of  modes  of  faith,  all  classes  of  men 
are  interested  in  preserving  the  national  religion."  Be- 
sides this,  in  their  own  nature  religious  doctrines  are 
more  permanent  in  their  hold  than  forms  of  civil  gov- 
ernment :  it  may  be  questioned,  for  instance,  whether, 
whatever  civil  changes  Scotland  might  undergo,  Pres- 


DECLINE  OF  THE  ARABIAN  EMPIRE    131 

byterianism  would  ever  cease  to  be  the  prevalent 
faith  of  its  inhabitants.  A  people  may,  with  the  over- 
throw of  usurped  civil  power,  return  to  their  ancient 
religion,  whatever  it  is :  but  when  once  a  religion  has 
become,  so  to  speak,  indigenous,  it  is  likely  to  be 
permanent.  Such  is  the  religion  of  the  Koran  both  in 
Asia  and  Africa. 

The  elements  of  political  weakness  and  decay  soon 
began  to  be  developed  in  the  chief  seat  of  the  Saracen 
empire.  In  the  earliest  days  of  the  caliphate,  after  the 
accession  of  the  Ommiade  dynasty,  the  princess  of 
Damascus  were  regarded  as  the  heads  of  the  Moslem 
faith:  while  the  governors  of  Arabia  successively  ob- 
tained, as  to  civil  rule,  their  independence.  To  this 
the  widely-extended  wars  in  which  the  caliphs  were 
engaged  no  doubt  contributed.  Other  provinces  fol- 
lowed the  example :  and,  as'  the  empire  enlarged,  the 
remoteness  and  degeneracy  of  the  Syrian  court  en- 
couraged the  governors  to  assume  to  themselves  every- 
thing except  the  name  of  king,  and  to  render  their  dig- 
nities hereditary.  All  the  provinces  were  nominally 
connected  with  the  empire  by  the  payment  of  tribute ; 
but  means  were  easily  devised  to  withhold  this,  under 
pretence  of  prosecuting  the  wars  of  the  caliph,  though 
really  to  strengthen  his  rebellious  deputies  against 
him.  If  in  this  we  discover  a  want  of  efficiency  in  the 
government,  we  need  not  be  surprised :  the  systems  of 
the  Macedonian  hero  and  of  the  Roman  conquerors 
were  equally  defective ;  and  perhaps  we  should  attrib- 
ute such  deficiency  to  a  wise  and  beneficent  arrange- 
ment of  Providence,  which,  that  oppression  may  never 
become  permanent  and  universal,  permits  not  any 
empire  for  a  very  long  time  to  hold  dominion  over 


132       MAGNIFICENCE  OF  THE  CALIPHS 

countries  dissimilar  in  their  habits  and  character,  and 
independent  of  each  other. 

To  the  establishment  of  these  separate  states,  the 
luxury  and  effeminacy  of  the  court  at  Damascus  in 
no  small  degree  contributed.  In  the  early  periods  of 
the  caliphate,  simplicity  and  charity  chiefly  distin- 
guished their  rulers ;  but,  as  the  wealth  and  power  of 
the  Saracens  increased,  they  imitated  the  splendor  and 
magnificence  of  the  monarchs  of  Persia  and  Greece. 
Abulfeda  says  of  the  court  in  trie  year  917:  "The 
Caliph  Moctadi's  whole  army,  both  horse  and  foot, 
were  under  arms,  which  together  made  a  body  of  one 
hundred  and  sixty  thousand  men.  His  state  officers 
stood  near  him  in  the  most  splendid  apparel,  their 
belts  shining  with  gold  and  gems.  Near  them  were 
seven  thousand  black  and  white  eunuchs.  The  porters 
or  doorkeepers  were  in  number  seven  hundred.  Barges 
and  boats,  with  the  most  superb  decorations,  were 
swimming  on  the  Tigris.  Nor  was  the  palace  itself 
less  splendid,  in  which  were  hung  thirty-eight  thou- 
sand pieces  of  tapestry,  twelve  thousand  five  hundred 
of  which  were  silk  embroidered  with  gold.  The  car- 
pets on  the  floor  were  twenty-two  thousand.  A  hun- 
dred lions  were  brought  out,  with  a  keeper  to  each 
lion.  Among  the  other  spectacles  of  rare  and  stupend- 
ous luxury  was  a  tree  of  gold  and  silver,  which  opened 
itself  into  eighteen  larger  branches,  upon  which  and 
the  other  smaller  branches  sat  birds  of  every  sort, 
made  also  of  gold  and  silver.  The  tree  glittered  with 
leaves  of  the  same  metals ;  and  while  its  branches, 
through  machinery,  appeared  to  move  of  themselves, 
the  several  birds  upon  them  warbled  their  natural 
notes." 


When,  moreover,  decline  had  once  commenced,  its 
progress  was  accelerated  by  the  means  taken  to  arrest 
it.  After  the  regular  troops  had  been  corrupted  by 
faction,  the  caliphs,  for  the  defence  of  their  person  and 
government,  formed  a  militia ;  but  the  soldiers  compos- 
ing this  force,  not  unfrequently  foreigners,  soon  gov- 
erned with  a  military  despotism  similar  to  that  of  the 
janizaries  of  Turkey,  the  Mamelukes  of  Egypt,  or  the 
praetorian  guards  of  Rome ;  and,  in  addition  to  these 
causes  of  decay,  a  furious  spirit  of  sectarianism  tore 
asunder  the  very  strength  and  heart  of  the  empire. 
The  colossal  power  of  the  successors  of  Mohammed, 
suddenly  towering  to  its  awful  height,  almost  as  sud- 
denly fell,  as  if  to  yield  more  perfect  confirmation  of 
the  truth,  that  all  earthly  things  are  destined  to  pass 
away,  while  the  word  of  the  living  God  abideth  for 
ever. 

Spain,  as  has  been  seen,  was  the  first  distant  prov- 
ince of  the  Arabian  empire  which  succeeded  in  separ- 
ating itself  and  setting  up  an  independent  caliph.  As. 
this  country  had  been  brought  under  the  Moslem  yoke 
by  means  chiefly  furnished  from  the  northern  states 
of  Africa,  its  independence  was  likely  to  produce  a 
corresponding  effect  upon  those  states.  They  were 
governed  in  the  name  of  the  Bagdad  caliphs ;  but  for 
nearly  a  century  they  had  been  growing  into  independ- 
ence, under  rulers  usually  known,  from  the  name  of 
their  progenitor,  as  the  Aglabite  dynasty.  Early  in 
the  ninth  century,  the  throne  of  Mauritania,  Massilia, 
and  Carthage  was  seized  by  Obeidollah,  whose  succes- 
sors assumed  the  title  of  Mihidi,  or  directors  of  <he 
faithful.  The  districts  of  Fez  and  Tangiers,  which 
had  been  already  wrested  from  the  princes  of  Bagdad 


134     THE  AFRICAN  PROVINCES  REVOLT 

by  the  real  or  pretended  posterity  of  AH,  were  soon 
brought  under  his  dominion  ;  and,  before  the  end  of 
the  tenth  century,  all  acknowledgment  of  the  Abbas- 
sidan  rule  was  obliterated  by  the  suppression  of  public 
prayers  for  the  princes  of  that  race.  A  succession  of 
changes  distracted  the  country  for  some  five  centuries 
afterward;  but,  about  the  year  1516,  the  descendants 
of  Mohammed  were  raised  to  the  throne  of  Morocco, 
which  has  been  transmitted,  without  interruption,  in 
the  same  line,  to  its  present  possessors.  Moez,  the 
last  of  the  African  princes  of  the  house  of  Obeidollah, 
who  seems  to  have  depended  for  his  dominion  more 
on  his  prowess  than  on  his  supposed  descent  from  Mo- 
hammed, transferred  his  court  to  Grand  Cairo,  a  city 
which  he  had  built  in  Egypt  after  his  conquest  of  that 
country.  Africa  was  to  he  held  as  a  fief  of  this  new- 
empire.  Large  tracts  of  Syria  and  the  whole  of  Pales- 
tine acknowledged  the  supremacy  of  his  descendants, 
commonly  known  as  Fatimites,  from  their  supposed 
relationship  to  Ali,  and  to  Fatima,  the  Prophet's 
daughter.  They  possessed  also  the  sovereignty  of  the 
Holy  Land :  against  them,  therefore,  the  crusades  of 
Europe  were  chiefly  directed.  During  these  formidable 
wars  the  caliphs  of  Egypt  sought  assistance  from  those 
of  Bagdad ;  and  Noureddin,  a  prince  of  that  empire, 
protected  them  against  their  Western  assailants.  The 
weakness  of  Egypt,  however,  came  thus  to  be  known 
to  the  crafty  and  powerful  caliphs  of  Bagdad,  and  in  a 
short  time  its  Asiatic  dominions  were  seized  upon  by 
Noureddin  and  Saladin.  As  Adhed,  the  last  caliph  of 
Egypt,  was  dying  in  the  mosque  of  Cairo,  these  gen- 
erals proclaimed  Morthadi,  the  thirty-third  caliph  of 
Bagdad,  as  his  successor.  Saladin,  whose  name,  from 


FIRST  DYNASTY  OF  THE  ABBASSIDES  135 

his  activity,  courage,  and  success  against  the  crusaders, 
is  better  known  to  the  readers  of  European  history 
than  that  of  almost  any  other  Mohammedan  prince, 
soon  made  himself  master  of  Egypt ;  but  his  successors 
could  not  maintain  the  power  he  had  acquired.  The 
country  was  afterwards  governed  by  the  celebrated  Mo- 
hammed Ali,  nominally  as  viceroy  of  the  Turkish  em- 
peror, though  he  was  in  reality  a  sovereign  and  inde- 
pendent prince. 

The  caliphs  of  the  house  of  Abbas,  having  built 
the  city  of  Bagdad  soon  after  their  accession  to  the 
throne,  transferred  thither  their  court  and  the  seat  o£ 
power.  For  five  centuries  they  reigned  there  with 
various  degrees  of  authority ;  but  foreign  wars  and 
domestic  revolts  gradually  dissolved  the  empire,  and 
their  dominion  at  length  passed  away.  Radhi,  the 
twentieth  caliph  of  the  race,  was  "  the  last,"  says 
Abulfeda,  "  who  harangued  the  people  from  the  pulpit ; 
who  passed  the  cheerful  hour  of  leisure  with  men  of 
learning  and  taste;  whose  expenses,  resources,  and 
treasures,  whose  table  and  magnificence,  had  any  re- 
semblance to  those  of  the  ancient  caliphs."  "  During 
the  next  three  centuries,"  says  a  modern  historian  of 
the  Arabian  empire,  "  the  successors  of  Mohammed 
swayed  a  feeble  sceptre.  Sometimes  their  state  was  so 
degraded  that  they  were  confined  in  their  palaces  like 
prisoners,  and  occasionally  were  almost  reduced  to  the 
want  of  corporeal  subsistence.  The  tragic  scences  of 
fallen  royalty  at  length  were  closed;  for,  towards  the 
middle  of  the  seventh  century  of  the  Hegira,  the  me- 
tropolis of  Islamism  fell  into  the  hands  of  Houlagou 
Khan,  the  grandson  of  Zenghis  Khan,  and  emperor  of 
the  Moguls  and  Tartars,  who  reigned  at  that  period 


136  SECOND  DYNASTY  OF  THE  ABBASSIDES 

with  absolute  and  unmixed  despotism  over  every 
nation  of  the  East.  The  caliph  Mostasem,  the  thirty- 
seventh  of  his  house,  was  murdered  under  circum- 
stances of  peculiar  barbarity,  and  the  caliphate  of 
Bagdad  expired.  Though  the  dignity  and  sovereignty 
of  the  caliphs  were  lost  by  this  fatal  event,  and  the  soul 
which  animated  the  form  had  fled,  yet  the  name  existed 
for  three  centuries  longer  in  the  eighteen  descendants 
of  Mostanser  Billah,  a  son,  or  pretended  son,  of  Daker, 
the  last  but  one  of  this  race  of  princes. 

"Mostanser  Billah  and  his  successors,  to  the  num- 
ber of  eighteen,  were  called  the  second  dynasty  of 
the  Abbassides,  and  were  spiritual  chiefs  of  the  Mo- 
hammedan religion,  but  without  the  slightest  vestige 
of  temporal  authority.  When  Selim,  emperor  of  the 
Turks,  conquered  Egypt  and  destroyed  the  power  of 
the  Mamelukes,  he  carried  the  caliph,  whom  he  found 
there  a  prisoner,  to  Constantinople,  and  accepted  from 
him  a<renunciation  of  his  ecclesiastical  supremacy.  On 
the  death  of  the  caliph,  the  family  of  the  Abbassides, 
once  so  illustrious,  and  which  had  borne  the  title  of 
caliph  for  almost  eight  hundred  years,  sunk  with  him 
from  obscurity  into  oblivion." 


CHAPTER  II. 

Literature  and  Science  of  the  Arabs. — Their  Facilities  for  Literary  and 
Scientific  Pursuits. — Patronage  of  Literature  by  the  Princes  of  the 
House  of  Abbas.  —  Almamoun.  —  Arabian  Schools.  —  Eloquence. — 
Poetry.  —  The  Arabian  Tales.  —  History.  —  Geography.  —  Speculative 
Sciences. — Astrology. — Mathematical  Knowledge  of  the  Arabs. — As- 
tronomy.— Architecture. — The  Fine  Arts. — Agriculture. — Medicine. — 
Chemistry. — Our  obligations  to  Arab  Literature. 

THE  early  followers  of  the  Arabian  prophet  were 
only  enthusiastic  military  adventurers,  subdu- 
ing in  their  wide  and  rapid  progress  most  of 
the  nations  of  the  then  known  world.  The  lust  of 
power,  and  successful  military  enterprise,  are  com- 
monly unfavorable  to  the  cultivation  of  the  liberal 
arts,  so  that  a  conquering  people  usually  exhibit  but 
little  taste  for  science  or  literature.  The  Goths  and  the 
Huns,  for  instance,  were  among  the  most  implacable 
foes  of  knowledge.  Nor  did  the  early  Arabs  regard  it 
with  more  favor.  Mohammed  found  his  countrymen 
sunk  in  the  deepest  barbarism :  he  was  incapable  of 
any  direct  effort  to  raise  them ;  and,  from  the  ruthless 
destruction  of  the  Alexandrean  library  by  Omar,  one 
of  his  earliest 'successors,  they  appear  not  to  have  been 
in  a  much  better  condition  after  the  close  than  at  the 
commencement  of  his  eventful  career. 

Their  settlement  in  the  countries  they  had  sub- 
dued, the  unlimited  resources  which  their  widespread 
conquests,  placed  within  their  reach,  and  probably  the 
leisure  which  their  almost  universal  dominion  afforded, 
speedily  led  to  a  change  in  their  character  in  relation 

137 


138          PHILOSOPHY  OF  THE  HINDUS 

to  literary  pursuits,  of  which  the  more  enlightened 
nations  of  the  West  are  still  reaping  the  advantage. 
It  was  about  the  middle  of  the  seventh  century  that 
Omar  committed  the  famous  library  -of  Alexandria  to 
the  flames:  before  the  end  of  the  eighth,  literature 
began  to  enjoy  the  munificent  patronage  of  the  caliphs 
of  the  Abbassidan  race,  who  superinduced  upon  the 
stern  fanaticism  of  the  followers  of  the  Prophet  the  soft- 
ening influences  of  learning;  and,  by  an  anomaly  in 
the  history  of  mankind,  the  most  valuable  lessons  in 
science  and  the  arts  have  been  received  from  a  people 
who  pursued  with  relentless  hostility  the  religion  and 
liberties  of  every  other  nation. 

The  Greeks  were  the  most  distinguished  patrons 
of  literature  and  science.  Among  them  philosophy 
found  its  earliest  home,  and  the  arts  are  commonly 
supposed  to  have  sprung  up  chiefly  under  their  foster- 
ing care,  though  modern  researches  have  shown  that 
much  of  their  knowledge  was  derived  from  still  more 
ancient  sources.  Their  philosophy,  though  greatly  im- 
proved by  them,  was  borrowed  from  the  mysteries  of 
the  Egyptian  priests  and  the  Persian  magi.  Their 
system  of  the  universe,  which  made  the  nearest  ap- 
proach to  the  more  correct  discoveries  of  modern 
times,  was  previously  known  to  the  learned  Hindus; 
and  it  may  admit  of  question  whether  their  whole  my- 
thology, allowing  for  the  additions  which  a  chastened 
and  vivid  imagination  would  make  to  it,  had  not  its 
prototype  in  some  Asiatic  religio-philosophical  system. 
A  learned  writer  on  the  erudition  of  the  Asiatics  says, 
that  the  whole  of  the  theology  of  the  Greeks,  and  part 
of  the  philosophy  of  modern  scientific  research,  may  be 
found  in  the  Hindu  Vedas.  He  adds,  "  That  most  sub- 


MOHAMMED  ENCOURAGES  LEARNING  139 

tile  spirit  which  Newton  suspected  to  pervade  natural 
bodies,  and  to  lie  concealed  in  them  so  as  to  cause 
attraction  and  repulsion,  the  emission,  reflection,  and 
refraction  of  light,  electricity,  calefaction,  sensation, 
and  muscular  motion,  is  described  by  the  Hindus  as 
a  fifth  element,  endued  with  those  very  powers ;  and 
the  Vedas  abound  with  allusions  to  a  force  universally 
attractive,  which  they  chiefly  attribute  to  the  sun." 
The  extension,  therefore,  of  the  Arabian  victories  over 
the  Eastern  world,  and  their  entire  command,  after  the 
overthrow  of  the  Greek  empire,  of  the  resources  pos- 
sessed by  that  people,  gave  them  access  to  all  the  liter- 
ary stores  then  in  existence. 

It  has  been  said,  and  probably  not  without  good 
reason,  that  Mohammed  himself  saw  and  felt  the  im- 
portance of  literary  distinction.  Among  the  sayings 
attributed  to  him,  the  following  has  been  considered 
as  evincing  his  sense  of  the  value  of  learning:  "A 
mind  without  erudition  is  like  a  body  without  a  soul. 
Glory  consists  not  in  wealth,  but  in  knowledge ;"  and, 
as  the  Koran  affords  abundant  proof,  he  was  by  no 
means  unmindful  of  that  mental  cultivation,  of  which 
the  means  were  within  his  reach.  His  immediate  fol- 
lowers, occupied  only  with  the  ideas  of  conquest  and 
conversion,  despised  equally  the  religion  and  learning 
of  the  nations  they  subdued ;  but  when  the  age  of 
rapine  and  violence  yielded  at  length  to  comparative 
security  and  quiet,  and  the  fair  and  splendid  city  of 
the  Oriental  caliphs  arose,  the  Muses  were  courted 
from  their  ancient  temples,  and  by  the  rnilder  and  more 
graceful  achievements  of  literature  and  science,  efforts 
were  made  to  expiate  the  guilt  of  former  conquest,  and 
to  shed  a  purer  lustre  over  the  Mohammedan  name. 


140  HAROUN  AL  RASCHID 

Almansor,  the  second  of  the  dynasty  of  the  Abbas- 
sides,  whose  reign  commenced  A.  D.  754,  and  lasted 
twenty-one  years,  was  among  the  first  of  the  Arab 
princes  to  foster  learning  and  the  arts.  Jurisprudence 
and  astronomy  were  the  principal  subjects  of  his  study, 
which,  however,  through  the  instruction  of  a  Greek 
physician  in  his  court,  he  extended  to  the  art  of  heal- 
ing, and  probably  to  those  kindred  arts  with  which,  in 
all  ages  and  countries,  medical  science  has  been  con- 
nected. What  progress  was  made  by  himself  or  his 
subjects,  we  cannot  now  ascertain.  His  two  immediate 
successors  seem  not  to  have  trodden  in  his  steps, 
though  it  is  probable  they  did  not  undo  what  he  had 
done ;  for  the  next  caliph,  Haroun  al  Raschid,  is  re- 
nowned as  one  of  the  most  munificent  patrons  that 
literature  ever  enjoyed.  He  was  fond  of  poetry  and 
music :  he  is  said  to  have  constantly  surrounded  him- 
self with  a  great  number  of  learned  men ;  and  to  him 
the  Arabs  were  deeply  indebted  for  the  progress  in 
knowledge  which  they  were  enabled  to  make.  Every 
mosque  in  his  dominions  had  a  school  attached  to  it 
by  his  order ;  and,  as  if  his  love  of  learning  were 
superior  even  to  his  hereditary  faith,  he  readily  toler- 
ated men  of  science  who  refused  to  yield  to  the  bold 
pretensions  of  the  Prophet.  A  Nestorian  Christian 
presided  over  his  schools,  and  directed  the  academical 
studies  of  his  subjects.  His  successor  imitated  his 
wise  and  generous  course ;  and  thus  knowledge  ex- 
tended from  the  capital  to  the  most  distant  extremities 
of  the  empire. 

But  it  was  during  the  reign  of  Almamoun,  the 
seventh  of  the  Abbassidan  princes,  A.  D.  813-833,  that 
literature  flourished  most  among  the  Arabs.  Learned 


ALMAMOUN  141 

men,  professors  of  the  Christian  faith,  had  multiplied 
at  Bagdad  under  the  tolerant  reigns  of  his  predeces- 
sors, and  they  were  now  liberally  encouraged  to  un- 
fold their  ample  stores  of  knowledge.  The  copious 
language  of  Arabia  was  employed  to  communicate 
whatever  that  of  the  Greeks  had  hitherto  concealed, 
though,  with  a  barbarism  for  which  it  is  difficult  to 
account,  many  of  the  original  works  were  destroyed  as 
soon  as  translations  of  them  were  made.  Almamoun  in 
his  youth  had  associated  with  the  most  eminent 
scholars  of  Greece,  Persia,  and  Chaldea;  and  he  now 
invited  them  to  his  court.  Bagdad  was  resorted  to  by 
poets,  philosophers,  and  mathematicians,  from  every 
country  and  of  every  creed.  Armenia,  Syria,  and 
Egypt  were  explored  by  his  agents  for  literary  treas- 
ures, which  were  amassed  with  infinite  care,  and  pre- 
sented at  the  foot  of  the  throne  as  the  richest  and  most 
acceptable  tribute  that  conquered  provinces  could 
render.  Camels,  hitherto  employed  exclusively  in 
traffic,  were  seen  entering  the  royal  city  laden  with 
Hebrew,  Persian,  and  Grecian  manuscripts.  The  court 
assumed  the  appearance  rather  of  an  academy  than  of 
a  council  guiding  the  affairs  of  a  luxurious  and  warlike 
government,  and  all  classes  were  encouraged  to  apply 
themselves  to  the  acquisition  of  knowledge  with  a  zeal 
commensurate  to  the  advantages  thus  afforded.  "  I 
chose,"  said  Almamoun,  when  remonstrated  with  for 
appointing  a  learned  Christian  to  an  office  of  no  small 
influence  over  the  intellectual  pursuits  of  his  people, 
"  I  chose  this  learned  man,  not  to  be  my  guide  in  reli- 
gious affairs,  but  to  be  my  teacher  of  science;  and  it 
is  well  known  that  the  wisest  men  are  to  be  found  among 
the  Jews  and  Christians." 


142  TWO  CLASSES  OF  SCHOOLS 

Under  such  favorable  auspices,  it  is  not  to  be  won- 
dered at  that  the  Saracens  became  a  literary  people. 
The  caliphs  of  the  West  and  of  Africa  imitated  their 
brethren  of  the  East.  "At  one  period,  six  thousand 
professors  and  pupils  cultivated  liberal  studies  in  the 
college  of  Bagdad.  Twenty  schools  made  Grand  Cairo 
a  chief  seat  of  letters;  and  the  talents  of  the  students 
were  exercised  in  the  perusal  of  the  royal  library, 
which  consisted  of  one  hundred  thousand  manuscripts. 
The  African  writers  dwell  with  pride  and  satisfaction 
on  the  literary  institution  which  adorned  the  towns  on 
the  northern  coast  of  their  sandy  plain.  The  sun  of 
science  arose  even  in  Africa,  and  the  manners  of  the 
Moorish  savage  were  softened  by  philosophy.  Their 
brethren  in  Europe  amassed  numerous  and  magnificent 
collections ;  two  hundred  and  eighty  thousand  volumes 
were  in  Cordova,  and  more  than  seventy  libraries  were 
open  to  public  curiosity  in  the  kingdom  of  Andalusia." 

We  know  but  little  of  the  internal  government  of 
the  Arabian  schools,  or  of  the  studies  actually  pursued. 
Aristotle,  no  doubt,  was  the  great  master  to  whom,  in 
philosophy,  all  deference  was  paid.  The  Prophet  had 
prescribed  their  religion.  Their  schools  were  of  two 
kinds,  or  rather  classes ;  the  one  comprehending  the  in- 
ferior institutions,  in  which  elementary  branches  of 
instruction,  such  as  reading,  writing,  and  religious 
doctrine  were  chiefly  attended  to;  the  other,  called 
Madras,  mostly  connected  with  the  mosques,  as  were 
all  the  schools  of  the  former  class,  included  those  in- 
stitutions in  which  the  higher  departments  of  knowl- 
edge were  explored.  Here  grammar,  logic,  theology, 
and  jurisprudence  were  studied.  The  management 
of  each  school  was  confided  to  a  principal  of  known 


ELOQUENCE  AND  POETRY  OF  THE  ARABS  143 

ability,  and  not  always  a  Mohammedan.  The  pro- 
fessors lectured  on  the  several  sciences ;  and  the  pupils, 
if  not  in  every  department,  of  which  there  is  some 
doubt,  certainly  in  that  of  medicine,  were  publicly  ex- 
amined, and  diplomas  were  given  under  the  hand  of 
the  chief  physician.  , 

Of  elegant  composition,  the  Koran  was  universally 
esteemed  the  model.  Hence  it  was  studied  with  the 
most  diligent  care  by  all  who  sought  to  distinguish 
themselves  in  the  art  of  eloquence,  one  of  the  leading 
acquirements  of  Arab  scholars.  Subordinate  to  this 
pre-eminent  composition,  their  schools  of  oratory 
boasted  of  models  scarcely  inferior  to  the  celebrated 
orators  of  antiquity.  Malek  and  Sharaif,  the  one  for 
pathos,  the  other  for  brilliancy,  are  the  chief  of  these. 
Horaiai  was  esteemed  as  the  compeer  of  Demosthenes 
and  Cicero.  Bedreddin,  of  Grenada,  was  their  "  torch 
of  eloquence ;"  and  Sekaki  obtained  the  honorable  des- 
ignation of  the  Arabian  Quinctilian. 

The  ancient  Arabs  were  much  inclined  to  poetry. 
The  wild,  romantic  scenery  of  the  land  they  inhabited, 
the  sacred  recollections  of  their  earliest  history,  the 
life  they  led,  everything  around  them,  contributed  to 
poetic  inspiration.  After  the  revival  of  letters,  this 
art  was  cultivated  with  enthusiasm.  The  heroic  meas- 
ures of  Ferdousi,  the  didactic  verses  of  Sadi,  and  the 
lyric  strains  of  Hafiz,  even  through  the  medium  of  im- 
perfect translations,  discover  animated  descriptions, 
bold  metaphors,  and  striking  expressions,  that  at  once 
delight  and  surprise  us.  In  splendor,  if  not  in  strength, 
the  poets  of  the  courts  of  Haroun  and  Almamoun,  or 
those  of  the  Ommiades  of  Spain,  have,  perhaps,  in  no 
age  been  excelled.  In  this  art,  as  among  other  people, 


144    CHARACTER  OF  ARAB  POETRY 

so  among  the  Arabs,  the  fair  sex  have  distinguished 
themselves.  Valadata,  Aysha,  Labana,  Safia,  and 
others,  ha^e  obtained  the  highest  encomiums. 

So  great  is  the  number  of  Arabian  poets,  that  Abul 
Abbas,  a  son  of  Motassem,  who  wrote  an  abridgment 
of  their  lives  in  the  ninth  century,  numbers  one  hun- 
dred and  thirty.  Other  authors  have  occupied  twenty- 
four,  thirty,  and  one  no  less  than  fifty  volumes,  in 
recording  their  history. 

The  Arabs,  however,  are  entirely  without  epic 
poetry,  so  important  a  department  of  the  art ;  nor  have 
they  anything  that  may  be  properly  ranked  as  dramatic 
composition.  Sophocles,  Euripides,  Terence,  and 
Seneca,  the  classic  models  of  Greece  and  Rome,  they 
despised  as  timid,  constrained,  and  cold;  and  under 
whatever  obligation  to  these  ancient  nations  the  Arabs 
may  have  been  in  other  departments  of  literature,  they 
owe  them  nothing,  or  next  to  nothing,  in  this.  Their 
poetry  was  original  and  local ;  their  figures  and  com- 
parisons were  strictly  their  own.  To  understand  and 
properly  appreciate  them,  we  must  have  a  knowledge 
of  the  productions  of  their  country,  and  of  the  char- 
acter, institutions,  and  manners  of  its  inhabitants. 
The  muse  delights  in  illustrations  and  figures  bor- 
rowed from  pastoral  life ;  that  of  Judea  revels  among1 
the  roses  of  Sharon,  the  verdant  slopes  of  Carmel,  and 
the  glory  of  Lebanon ;  while  the  Arab  muse  selects  for 
her  ornaments  the  pearls  of  Omar,  the  musk  of  Hadra- 
maut,  the  groves  and  nightingales  of  Aden,  and  the 
spicy  odors  of  Yemen.  If  these  appear  to  us  fantastic, 
it  must  be  remembered  they  are  borrowed  from  ob- 
jects and  scenes  to  which  we  are  almost  utter  strangers. 

Who  is  not  familiar  with  the  Alif  lita  wa  lilin,  or 


HISTORICAL  WORKS  OF  THE  ARABS  145 

the  thousand  and  one  tales,  commonly  known  as  the 
Arabian  Nights'  Entertainment?  Some  have  ques- 
tioned whether  they  are  an  original  work,  or  a  trans- 
lation from  the  Indian  or  Persian,  made  in  the  Augus- 
tan age  of  Arab  literature :  a  doubt  certainly  not  war- 
ranted by  any  want  of  exactness  in  their  description 
of  Arabian  life  and  manners.  They  seem  to  have  been 
originally  the  legends  of  itinerant  story-tellers,  a  class 
of  persons  still  very  numerous  in  every  part  of  the 
Mohammedan  world.  The  scenes  they  unfold,  true  to 
nature;  the  simplicity  displayed  in  their  characters, 
their  beauty  and  their  moral  instruction,  appeal  irre- 
sistibly to  the  hearts  of  all;  while  the  learned  concede 
to  them  the  merit  of  more  perfectly  describing  the 
manners  of  the  singular  people  from  whom  they 
sprung,  than  the  works  of  any  traveler,  however  ac- 
complished and  indefatigable. 

Of  history  the  ancient  Arabs  were  strangely  negli- 
gent; but,  by  the  modern,  this  department  of  knowl- 
edge has  been  cultivated  with  greater  care  and  success. 
Annals,  chronicles,  and  memoirs,  almost  numberless, 
are  extant  among  them;  kingdoms,  provinces,  and 
towns  are  described,  and  their  history  is  narrated  in 
volumes,  a  bare  catalogue  of  which  would  extend  to  a 
wearisome  length.  They  abound,  however,  more  in 
the  fanciful  than  in  the  substantial  and  correct.  Of 
this,  the  titles  of  some  of  the  most  approved  works  of 
this  kind  may  be  taken  as  specimens:  A  chronology 
of  the  Caliphs  of  Spain  and  Africa  is  denominated  "  A 
Silken  Vest,  embroidered  with  the  Needle ;"  a  History 
of  Grenada,  "A  Specimen  of  the  Full  Moon;"  Ibn 
Abbas  and  Abu  Bakri  are  authors  of  historical  collec- 
tions, entitled  respectively,  "  Mines  of  Silver,"  and 

M.  of  H.— XXXIV— 10 


146          KNOWLEDGE  OF  GEOGRAPHY 

"  Pearls  and  Picked-Up  Flowers."  Yet  some  of  their 
writers,  as  Ibn  Kutaiba,  are  chiefly  remarkable  for  the 
extent  and  accuracy  of  their  historical  knowledge ;  and 
some  of  their  'works  are  exceedingly  voluminous.  A 
full  history  of  Spain  occupied  six  authors  in  succes- 
sion, and  cost  the  labor  of  one  hundred  and  fifteen 
years  to  complete.  Their  biography  was  not  confined 
to  men.  Ibn  Zaid  and  Abul  Mondar  wrote  a  genealog- 
ical history  of  distinguished  horses ;  and  Alasucco  and 
Abdolmalec  performed  the  same  service  for  camels 
worthy  of  being  held  in  remembrance.  Encyclopaedias 
and  gazetteers,  with  dictionaries  of  the  sciences  and 
other  similar  works,  occupied  Arabian  pens  long  before 
they  came  into  vogue  among  more  modern  literati. 
Every  species  of  composition,  indeed,  and  almost  every 
subject,  in  one  age  or  another,  have  engaged  the  at- 
tention of  learned  Mohammedans. 

Geography  they  did  not  so  well  understand,  their 
means  of  acquiring  knowledge  on  this  subject  being 
exceedingly  limited.  Yet  their  public  libraries  could 
boast  of  globes,  voyages,  and  itineraries,  the  produc- 
tions of  men  who  traveled  to  acquire  geographical  in- 
formation. With  statistics  and  political  economy  they 
had  but  an  imperfect  acquaintance ;  yet  so  early  as  the 
reign  of  Omar  II.,  we  find  a  work  devoted  to  these 
subjects,  giving  an  account  of  the  provinces  and  cities 
of  Spain,  with  its  rivers,  ports,  and  harbors;  of  the 
climate,  soil,  mountains,  plants,  and  minerals  of  that 
country ;  with  its  imports,  and  the  manner  in  which  its 
several  productions,  natural  and  artificial,  might  be 
manufactured  and  applied  to  the  best  advantage. 
Money,  weights,  and  measures,  with  whatever  else 
political  economy  may  be  understood  to  include,  were 


STUDY  OF  ASTROLOGY  147 

also  subjects  which  employed  their  ingenious  specula- 
tions, and,  in  some  cases,  their  laborious  research. 

The  speculative  sciences,  scarcely  less  than  polite 
literature,  flourished  among  the  Arabs.  Indeed,  what 
superstitious,  enthusiastic  people  has  ever  neglected 
these?  Their  ardor  in  the  more  dignified  of  these  pur- 
suits was  badly  regulated ;  subtleties  were  preferred  to 
important  practical  truths ;  and,  frequently,  the  more 
ingenious  the  sophism,  constructed  after  the  rules  of 
Aristotle,  the  more  welcome  was  it  to  men  who  ren- 
dered to  that  philosopher  a  homage  almost  idolatrous^ 
The  later  Arabs,  and  the  Turks  of  the  present  day,  pay 
no  little  attention  to  astrology,  though  it  is  strongly 
prohibited  by  their  Prophet.  This  science  was  univer- 
sally employed  by  the  idolaters,  against  whom  his 
denunciations  are  scarcely  less  inveterate  than  are 
those  of  the  inspired  voltrme ;  and  doubtless  he  appre- 
hended that  its  prevalence  would  hazard  the  integrity, 
if  not  the  very  existence,  of  his  own  system  of  religion. 
For  many  ages,  therefore,  it  was  discountenanced; 
but,  at  length,  the  habit  of  consulting  the  stars  on  im- 
portant public  occasions  became  frequent,  and  was 
attended  with  as  much  anxiety  and  as  many  absurd 
ceremonies  as  disgraced  the  nations  of  antiquity. 
Among  the  modern  Mohammedans,  no  dignity  of  state 
is  conferred ;  no  public  edifice  is  founded,  except  at  a 
time  recommended  by  astrologers.  These  pretenders 
to  knowledge  are  supported  by  persons  of  rank  ;  and  in 
vain  do  the  more  enlightened  part  of  the  community 
exclaim  that  astrology  is  a  false  science.  "  Do  not 
think,"  said  a  prime  minister,  who  had  been  consulting 
a  soothsayer  as  to  the  time  of  putting  on  a  new  dress, 
"  that  I  am  such  a  fool  as  to  put  faith  in  all  this  non- 


148  MATHEMATICAL  AND  PHYSICAL  SCIENCE 

sense ;  but  I  must  not  make  my  family  unhappy  by 
refusing  to  comply  with  forms  which  some  of  them 
deem  of  consequence." 

After^hese  references  to  the  polite  literature  of  the 
Arabs,  it  will  be  expected  that  they  should  have  paid 
attention  to  the  natural  sciences.  They  were  not,  in- 
deed, discoverers  and  inventors,  but  they  considerably 
improved  upon  what  they  acquired  in  their  extensive 
intercourse  with  other  nations ;  and,  as  forming  the  link 
which  unites  ancient  and  modern  letters,  they  are  en- 
titled to  our  respect  and  gratitude.  We  derive  our 
mathematics  from  them ;  and  to  them,  algo,  we  owe 
much  of  our  astronomical  knowledge.  Almamoun,  by 
a  liberal  reward,  sought  to  engage  in  his  service  a 
famous  mathematician  of  Constantinople;  and  Ibn 
Korrah  enriched  the  stores  of  his  country  in  this  de- 
partment with  translations  of  Archimedes  and  the 
conies  of  Apollonius.  Some  have  said  that,  on  the 
revival  of  European  literature  in  the  fifteenth  century, 
mathematical  science  was  found  nearly  in  the  state  in 
which  it  had  been  left  by  Euclid ;  and  the  justly  cele- 
brated Brucker  contends,  that  the  Arabs  made  no 
progress  whatever  in  this  most  important  branch  of 
knowledge ;  later  writers,  however,  and  particularly 
Montucla,  the  author  of  the  Historic  des  Mathemat- 
iques,  have  done  ample  justice  to  their  researches. 
Numerical  characters,  without  which  our  study  of  the 
exact  sciences  were  almost  in  vain,  beyond  all  doubt 
came  to  us  from  the  Arabs:  not  that  they  invented 
them — it  is  probable  they  were  originally  words,  per- 
haps Hindu  words,  expressing  the  quantities  they 
respectively  represent,  but  abbreviated  and  brought  to 
their  present  convenient  form  by  the  followers  of  the 


ASTRONOMY  OF  THE  ARABS  149 

Prophet.  Trigonometry  and  algebra  are  both  indebted 
to  their  genius.  The  sines  of  the  one  of  these  sciences 
instead  of  the  more  ancient  chord,  and  the  representa- 
tives of  quantities  in  the  other,  descend  through  the 
Arabs  to  us,  if  they  did  not  at  first  invent  them. 
Original  works  on  spherical  trigonometry  are  among 
the  productions  of  Ibn  Musa  and  Geber,  the  former  of 
whom  is  accounted  the  inventor  of  the  solution  of  equa- 
tions of  the  second  degree.  The  University  of  Leyden 
still  retains  a  manuscript  treatise  on  the  algebra  of 
cubic  equations,  by  Omar  .Ibn  Ibrahim ;  and  Casiri, 
who  preserved  and  classed  1851  manuscripts,  even 
after  a  fire  had  destroyed  the  magnificent  collection  of 
the  Escurial,  informs  us,  that  the  principles  and  praises 
of  algebraic  science  were  sung  in  an  elaborate  poem  by 
.Alcassem,  a  native  of  Grenada.  These  departments  of 
knowledge  were  studied  by  the  Arabs  as  early  as  the 
eighth  and  ninth  centuries. 

Astronomy,  the  science  of  a  pastoral  people,  and 
eminently  so  in  regions  with  an  almost  cloudless  sky, 
like  the  East,  was  studied  with  great  eagerness  by 
Arabian  philosophers.  Almamoun,  who  has  been  be- 
fore mentioned,  was  ardently  devoted  to  it:  at  his  cost 
the  necessary  instruments  of  observation  were  pro- 
vided, and  a  complete  digest  of  the  science  was  made. 
The  land  where,  many  ages  before,  this  science  had 
been  successfully  studied  by  the  Chaldeans,  was  in  his 
power,  and  upon  its  ample  plains  a  degree  of  the 
earth's  circle  was  repeatedly  measured,  so  as  to  deter- 
mine the  whole  circumference  of  the  globe  to  be 
twenty-four  thousand  miles.  The  obliquity  of  the 
ecliptic  they  settled  at  twenty-three  degrees  and  a  half: 
the  annual  movement  of  the  equinoxes  and  the  dura- 


150        ARCHITECTURE  OF  THE  ARABS 

tion  of  the  tropical  year  were  brought  to  within  a  very 
little  of  the  exact  observations  of  modern  times,  the 
slight  error  they  admitted  resulting  from  the  prefer- 
ence they  gave  to  the  system  of  Ptolemy.  Albathani, 
or,  as  his  name  has  been  Latinized,  Albatenius,  in  the 
ninth  century,  after  continuing  his  observations  for 
forty  years,  drew  up  tables,  known  as  the  Sabean 
tables,  which,  though  not  now  in  very  high  repute  be- 
cause of  more  accurate  calculations,  were  for  a  long1 
time  justly  esteemed.  Other  Arabian  astronomers 
have  rendered  considerable  service  to  this  science. 
Mohammedanism  did  not,  like  ancient  paganism,  adore 
the  stars;  but  its  disciples  studied  them  with  a  dili- 
gence, without  which,  perhaps,  Newton,  Flam-stead, 
and  Halley  had  observed  and  calculated  almost  in  vain. 
Architecture  was  an  art  in  which  the  Arabs  greatly 
excelled ;  their  wide  extension  gave  them  command  of 
whatever  was  worthy  of  observation,  and  their  vast 
revenues  afforded  the  most  abundant  means  of  indulg- 
ing a  taste  thus  called  into  exercise.  The  history  of 
Arabian  architecture  comprises  a  period  of  about  eight 
centuries,  including  its  rise,  progress,  and  decay :  their 
building  materials  were  mostly  obtained  from  the 
ruined  structures  and  cities  that  fell  into  their  hands; 
and  if  no  one  particular  style  was  followed  by  them, 
it  was  because  they  successfully  studied  most  of  the 
styles  then  known.  On  their  buildings  but  little  ex- 
ternal art  was  bestowed ;  all  their  pains  were  exhausted 
on  the  interior,  where  no  expense  was  spared  that 
could  promote  luxurious  ease  and  personal  comfort. 
Their  walls  and  ceilings  were  highly  embellished,  and 
the  light  was  mostly  admitted  in  such  manner  as,  by 
•excluding  all  external  objects,  to  confine  the  admira- 


THE  FINE  ARTS  AMONG  THE  ARABS    151 

tion  of  the  spectator  to  the  beauties  produced  within. 
With  the  art  of  preserving  their  structures  from  decay 
they  must  have  had  an  adequate  acquaintance.  Their 
stucco  composition  may  still  be  found  as  hard  as  stone, 
without  a  crack  or  flaw :  the  floors  and  ceilings  of  the 
Alhambra,  the  ancient  palace  of  Grenada,  have  been 
comparatively  uninjured  by  the  neglect  and  dilapida- 
tion of  nearly  seven  centuries ;  while  their  paint  retains 
its  color  so  bright  and  rich  as  to  be  occasionally  mis- 
taken for  mother-of-pearl.  Sir  Christopher  Wren  de- 
rives the  Gothic  architecture  from  the  Mohammedans ; 
and  the  crescent  arch,  a  symbol  of  one  of  the  deities 
anciently  worshipped  throughout  the  heathen  world, 
was  first  adopted  by  the  Arabs  of  Syria,  and  invariably 
used  on  all  the  edifices  erected  during  the  supremacy 
of  the  Ommiades.  'The  succeeding  dynasty  declined 
following  this  model ;  but,  during  the  reign  of  the 
house  of  Moawiyah,  in  Spain,  it  was  imitated  from  the 
Atlantic  to  the  Pyrenees. 

The  fine  arts,  paintings,  and  sculpture,  were  not  so 
much  cultivated  among  the  early  Mohammedans :  they 
were  thought  to  involve  a  breach  of  the  divine  law.  In 
this  particular  they  agreed  with  the  Jews.  Subse- 
quently, however,  these  scruples  were,  by  degrees, 
overcome ;  that  style  of  embellishment  denominated 
Arabesque,  which  rejects  figures  of  men  and  animals, 
being  first  adopted,  and  afterward  sculpture,  more 
nearly  resembling  that  of  modern  times.  The  Alham- 
bra, or  palace  of  that  suburb,  had  its  lions,  its  orna- 
mented tiles,  and  its  paintings.  Abdal-Rahman  III. 
placed  a  statue  of  his  favorite  mistress  over  the  palace 
he  erected  for  her  abode.  Music  was  ardently  culti- 
vated. At  first,  in  the  desert,  its  strains  were  rude 


152  MEDICAL  KNOWLEDGE  OF  THE  AKABS 

and  simple ;  subsequently,  the  professors  of  the  art 
were  as  much  cherished,  honored,  and  rewarded,  as 
were  the  poets  in  the  courts  of  the  Arab  sovereigns. 
Many  were  celebrated  for  their  skill  in  this  art, 
especially  Isaac  Almouseli.  Al  Farabi  has  been  de- 
nominated the  Arabian  Orpheus :  by  his  astonishing 
command  of  the  lute,  he  could  produce  laughter,  or 
tears,  or  sleep  in  his  auditors  at  pleasure.  He  wrote  a 
considerable  work  on  music,  which  is  preserved  in  the 
Escurial.  Abul  Faragi  is  also  a  famous  writer  among 
the  Mohammedans  on  this  subject.  To  them  we  are 
indebted  for  the  invention  of  the  lute,  which  they  ac- 
counted more  perfect  than  any  other  instrument;  the 
use,  also,  of  many  of  our  modern  instruments,  as  the 
organ,  flute,  harp,  tabor,  and  mandoline,  was  common 
among  them.  Some  say  that  the  national  instrument 
of  the  Scottish  highlander  is  taken  from  them. 

In  many  of  the  useful  arts  of  modern  days  the  Arabs 
were  proficients  ;  as  agriculture,  gardening,  metallurgy, 
and  the  preparing  of  leather.  The  names  Morocco  and 
Cordovan  are  still  applied,  in  this  latter  art,  to  leather 
prepared  after  the  Arabian  method.  They  manufac- 
tured and  dyed  silk  and  cotton,  made  paper,  were  ac- 
quainted with  the  use  of  gunpowder,  and  have  claims 
to  the  honor  of  inventing  the  mariner's  compass.  But 
perhaps  there  is  no  art  in  which  their  knowledge  is  so 
much  a  subject  of  curious  inquiry  as  medicine.  Their 
country  was  salubrious,  their  habits  simple,  and  their 
indulgences  few ;  so  that  large  opportunities  of  prac- 
tically studying  the  art*  at  least  among  the  Arabs  of 
earlier  date,  would  not  occur.  Anatomy,  except  that 
of  the  brute  creation,  was  shut  up  from  their  study  by 
the  prejudices  of  their  creed ;  yet  they  excelled  in  med- 


CHEMISTRY  AMONG  THE  ARABS       153 

ical  skill.  Hareth  ibn  Kaldar,  an  eminent  practitioner 
settled  at  Mecca,  was  honored  with  the  conversation 
and  applause  of  Mohammed.  Honain  was  an  eminent 
Arab  physician  in  the  middle  of  the  sixth  century ; 
Messue,  the  celebrated  preceptor  of  Almamoun,  be- 
longed to  this  profession;. and  a  host  of  others  adorn 
the  early  annals  of  the  Saracens.  Al  Rhagi,  or  Rhages, 
as  commonly  called,  and  Abdallah  Ibn  Sina,  or  Avi- 
cenna,  are  names  to  which,  for  centuries,  deference  was 
paid  by  professors  of  the  healing  art  throughout 
Europe,  though  it  would  not  be  difficult  to  show  that 
their  doctrines  and  practice  must  have  been  beyond 
measure  absurd.  They  administered  gold  and  silver, 
and  precious  stones  to  purify  the  blood. 

Of  chemistry,  so  far  as  it  relates  to  medicine,  the 
Arabs  may  be  considered  as  the  inventors ;  and  botany, 
in  the  same  connection,  they  cultivated  with  great  suc- 
cess. Geber,  in  the  eighth  century,  is  known  as  their 
principal  chemical  writer ;  he  is  said  to  have  composed 
five  hundred  volumes,  almost  every  one  of  which  is 
lost.  The  early  nomenclature  of  the  science  indicates 
how  much  it  owes  to  this  people.  Alcohol,  alembic, 
alkali,  aluclel,  and  other  similar  terms,  are  evidently  of 
Arabic  origin ;  nor  should  it  be  forgotten  that  the  char- 
acters used  for  drugs,  essences,  extracts,  and  medicines, 
the  import  of  which  is  now  almost  entirely  unknown 
(and  which  are  consequently  invested,  in  vulgar  esti- 
mation, with  occult  powers),  are  all  to  be  traced  to  the 
some  source. 

It  may  be  impossible  now  to  estimate  accurately  the 
extent  of  our  obligations  to  Arabian  literature.  An 
empire  so  widely  spread,  by  the  encouragement  it  gave 
to  letters,  must  have  had  a  beneficial  influence  on 


154  OBLIGATIONS  OF  SCIENCE  TO  THE  ARABS 

almost  every  country.  Europeans,  whether  subject  to 
its  sway  or  only  contemplating  it  from  a  distance, 
copied  or  emulated  the  example.  Gerbert,  who  sub- 
sequently occupied  the  papal  chair  as  Sylvester  II.,  ac- 
quired the  Arabic  method  of  computation  during  his 
travels  in  Spain,  previously  to  his  elevation.  Leon- 
ardo, a  Pisan  merchant,  obtained  a  knowledge  o^the 
same  art  in  his  intercourse  with  the  Mohammedans  on 
the  coast  of  Africa ;  and  by  him  it  was  introduced  into 
his  own  native  republic,  from  whence  it  was  soon  com- 
municated to  the  Western  World.  In  the  city  of 
Salernum,  a  port  of  Italy,  Mussulmans  and  Christians 
so  intermixed  as  to  communicate  insensibly  the  litera- 
ture of  the  Saracens  to  the  Italians,  and  in  the  schools 
of  that  city  students  were  collected  from  every  quarter 
of  Europe.  Arabic  books,  by  command  of  Charle- 
magne, were  translated  into  Latin  for  the  use  of  learned 
men  throughout  his  vast  empire  ;  and,  without  exagger- 
ating the  merits  of  the  followers  of  the  Prophet,  it  may 
be  admitted  that  we  are  indebted  to  them  for  the  re- 
vival of  the  exact  and  physical  sciences,  and  for  many 
of  those  useful  arts  and  inventions  that  have  totally 
changed  the  aspect  of  European  literature,  and  are  still 
contributing  to  the  civilization,  freedom,  and  best  inter- 
ests of  man. 


CHAPTER  III. 

The  present  Condition  of  Mohammedanism. — In  Turkey. — The  Doctrines 
believed  there. — Their  Forms  of  Devotion. — Lustrations. — Prayer. — 
Mohammedan  Sabbath.— Fast  of  Ramadan. — Meccan  Pilgrimage. — 
Proselytism. — Mohammedan  Hierarchy. — Islamism  in  Tartary. — In 
Hindustan. — In  China. — In  Persia. — In  Africa. — In  the  Indian  Archi- 
pelago.— The  Sooffees. — The  Wahabees. 

THE  present  condition  of  the  Mohammedan  faith, 
with  some  account  of  the  standing  it  maintains 
in  the  world,  will  not  be  deemed  an  inappro- 
priate subject  for  the  closing  pages  of  this  volume.  Its 
votaries  have  long  ceased  to  spread  alarm  through  the 
nations  by  their  victorious  and  devastating  progress ; 
the  fire  of  its  fanaticism  is  almost  extinct ;  nevertheless, 
its  doctrines  prevail  over  a  number  of  mankind  almost 
equal  to  any  other  system  of  false  religion ;  they  are 
professed  in  nations  and  countries  remote  from  each 
other,  and  having  no  other  mutual  resemblance  than 
that  involved  in  their  common  superstition.  In  Spain, 
indeed,  Christianity  has  triumphed  over  Islamism  ;  and 
in  the  inhospitable  regions  of  Siberia,  a  part  of  the 
ancient  Tartary,  its  advance  has  been  somewhat 
checked ;  but  in  middle  and  lower  Asia,  and  in  Africa, 
the  number  of  Mohammed's  followers  has  increased. 
We  cannot  state  with  accuracy  the  number  either  of 
Mohammedan  or  of  nominal  Christians;  but,  looking 
at  religion  geographically,  while  Christianity  has  al- 
most entire  dominion  in  Europe,  in  Asia  Islamism  is  one 
of  the  dominant,  religions:  in  America  the  cross  is 

155 


156  TURKISH  EMPIRE 

rapidly  becoming  the  symbol  of  faith  throughout  both 
its  vast  continents ;  but  in  Africa  the  crescent  waves 
to  the  almost  entire  exclusion  of  every  other  emblem. 

It  is  in  Turkey  that  Mohammedanism,  exists  at  the 
present  day  in  its  most  perfect  form.  To  this  country, 
therefore,  our  attention  shall  be  first  directed. 

Constantinople,  anciently  called  Byzantium,  and 
the  countries  over  which  the  Greek  emperors  residing 
in  that  city  reigned,  were  subdued  by  the  powerful 
caliphs  of  Bagdad,  while  those  of  Spain  and  the  West 
were  endeavoring  to  push  their  conquests  over  the 
fairest  portions  of  Europe.  The  situation  of  Constanti- 
nople and  the  surrounding  empire  lay  especially  open 
to  the  Eastern  Mohammedans,  whose  warlike  incur- 
sions were  incessant.  Tartars  from  Asia  overran  the 
empire.  Othman,  in  the  early  part  of  the  thirteenth 
century,  laid  the  foundation  of  Turkish  greatness.  Or- 
chan,  Amurath,  and  Bajazet,  his  successors,  amid  both 
foreign  and  domestic  wars,  greatly  contributed  to  its 
establishment  and  increase.  The  children  of  the  last 
of  these  conquerors  threw  the  empire  into  a  frightful 
state  of  distraction  by  their  unnatural  quarrels,  till,  at 
last,  the  youngest  of  them,  named  after  the  Prophet, 
restored  its  integrity,  and  established  something  like 
domestic  tranquillity.  Under  a  grandson  of  his,  Mo- 
hammed II.,  whom  Bayle  describes  as  one  of  the  great- 
est men  recorded  in  history,  the  Morea  was  subjugated, 
and  the  Greek  empire,  so  long  shaken  by  internal  dis- 
sensions, and  tottering  to  dissolution  by  its  luxury,  was 
trampled  in  the  dust  by  the  Moslem  conquerors.  Con- 
stantinople at  last  yielded  to  their  power,  and  a  palace 
for  the  victor  was  erected  on  the  very  spot  which  Con- 
stantine  had  chosen  for  his  magnificent  abode. 


RELIGIOUS  CREED  OF  THE  TURKS    157 

From  this  time  to  that  of  Solyman  the  Magnificent, 
to  whom  the  Turks  owe  their  laws  and  police,  the  em- 
pire continued  to  prosper,  but  immediately  afterward 
its  decline  commenced.  Letters  and  science  have  made 
but  little  progress  among  that  people,  and  their  sultans 
have  possessed  none  of  the  martial  enterprise  and  en- 
ergy of  their  early  predecessors ;  still  the  faith  of  Mo- 
hammed has  maintained,  and  down  to  this  day  con- 
tinues to  maintain,  a  hold  which  it  enjoys  in  almost  no 
other  country. 

The  Turks  generally  repose  the  most  implicit  faith 
in  the  two  leading  articles  of  the  Mohammedan  creed, 
that  there  is  but  one  God,  and  that  Mohammed  is  his 
Prophet;  and  since,  in  the  opinion  of  the  Moslems,  a 
simple  assent  to  these  doctrines  comprises  all  that  is 
valuable  in  religion,  and  will  be  surely  followed  by  the 
possession  of  heaven,  either  immediately  or  remotely, 
it  is  readily  conceivable  that  infidelity  will  be  exceed- 
ingly rare.  In  religious  matters,  the  heart  opposes  not 
so  much  what  is  to  be  believed  as  what  is  to  be  done. 

Minor  points  of  their  theology  have  been  from  time 
to  time  disputed,  but  these  may  be  regarded  as  gen- 
erally settled.  Predestination  is  one  of  the  chief  dog- 
mas on  which  the  faith  of  the  Turk  is  as  firmly  fixed 
as  on  the  most  momentous  article  in  his  creed.  Fatal- 
ism was  the  great  engine  employed  by  Mohammed  in 
establishing  his  religion  ;  and  among  the  Turks  this  doc- 
trine is  received  as  regulating  their  destiny,  controlling 
all  events,  and  determining  the  results  of  every  individ- 
ual's actions  ;  thus  unnerving  the  soul  for  generous  and 
manly  enterprise,  and  casting  a  lethargy  on  the  whole 
nation.  In  everything  the  operations  of  reason  are 
checked,  and  even  made  to  wait  for  the  imagined  man- 


158  DOCTRINE  OF  FATALISM 

ifestations  of  Deity.  According  to  the  creed  of  the 
Turks,  not  only  is  everything  foreknown  to  God,  but 
everything  is  predetermined,  and  brought  about  by  his 
direct  and  immediate  agency. 

The  Turk  is  keen  and  wise  in  his  ordinary  transac- 
tions; in  promoting  his  own  interests,  he  knows  how 
to  exercise  the  powers  of  his  mind ;  but,  when  difficulty 
or  doubt  overtakes  him,  he  makes  no  effort.  The  thick 
cloud  of  his  misfortunes  is  suffered  to  remain;  his 
troubles  are  yielded  to  with  sullen  indifference ;  he  con- 
siders it  impious  to  oppose  the  determinations  of  the 
Most  High.  To  all  improvement,  such  a  doctrine  is  a 
decided  and  invincible  foe;  in  some  circumstances, 
however,  it  appears  to  have  its  advantages.  Does  a 
Mohammedan  suffer  by  calamity?  Is  he  plundered  or 
ruined?  He  does  not  fruitlessly  bewail  his  lot.  His 
answer  to  all  murmuring  suggestions  is,  "  It  was  writ- 
ten;"  and  to  the  most  unexpected  transition  from 
opulence  to  poverty,  he  submits  without  a  sign.  The 
approach  of  death  does  not  disturb  his  tranquillity;  he 
makes  his  ablution,  repeats  his  prayers,  professes  his 
belief  in  God  and  his  Prophet,  and  in  a  last  appeal 
to  the  aid  of  affection,  he  says  to  his  child,  "  turn  my 
head  towards  Mecca,"  and  calmly  expires. 

A  people's  religion  is  traced  in  their  established 
and  common  forms  of  devotion,  and  none  are  more 
attentive  to  these  than  the  Turks.  To  neglect  any 
ceremony  which  their  religion  prescribes,  is  deemed  a 
mark  either  of  inferior  understanding  or  of  depraved 
character.  Public  decorum  is  everywhere  observed; 
and  though  both  moral  and  religious  precepts  are  vio- 
lated with  impunity  and  without  remorse,  they  are 
always  spoken  of  with  great  respect.  A  Mohammedan 


PURIFICATIONS  AMONG  THE  TURKS  159 

is  never  ashamed  to  defend  his  faith ;  and  of  his  sin- 
cerity and  firmness,  the  earnestness  of  his  vindication 
may  be  taken  as  sufficient  proof:  he  not  unfrequently 
interrupts  the  progress  of  conversation  by  repeating  his 
religious  formula.  In  the  Turkish  towns,  travelers  are 
incessantly  met  with  the  cry  of  Allah  Ackbar ;  and  by 
Mussulmans,  who  would  be  esteemed  pious,  the  divine 
name  is  as  frequently  repeated  as  if  reverent  and  de- 
vout thoughts  were  habitually  uppermost  in  their 
minds. 

Purifications  are  constantly,  and  with  great  strict- 
ness, performed  by  the  Mussulmans  of  every  country, 
but  especially  by  those  of  Turkey.  Their  professed  ob- 
ject is  to  render  the  body  fit  for  the  decorous  perform- 
ance of  religious  duties;  no  act  being  praiseworthy  or 
acceptable,  in  their  estimation,  unless  the  person  of  the 
performer  be  in  a  condition  of  purity.  Some  have 
thought,  but  without  sufficient  grounds,  that  these  ex- 
ternal purifications  are  believed  to  supersede  an  inward 
cleansing  of  the  heart.  Fountains  placed  round  their 
mosques,  and  numerous  baths  in  every  city,  enable  the 
devout  to  perform  their  five  prayers  daily,  during 
which,  if  they  chance  to  receive  pollution  from  any- 
thing accidentally  coming  in  contact  with  them,  their 
devotions  are  suspended  till  the  offensive  inconvenience 
is  removed  by  water  or  other  means. 

At  the  appointed  hour,  the  Maazeens  or  criers,  with 
their  faces  towards  Mecca,  their  eyes  closed,  and  their 
hands  upraised,  pace  the  little  galleries  of  the  minarets 
or  towers  of  the  mosques,  and  proclaim  in  Arabic,  the 
Moslem  language  of  devotion,  that  the  season  of  prayer 
has  arrived.  Instantly,  every  one,  whatever  may  be  his 
rank  or  employment,  gives  himself  up  to  it.  Ministers 


160  FREQUENT  PRAYERS 

of  state  suspend  the  most  important  affairs,  and  pros- 
trate themselves  on  the  floor ;  the  tradesman  forgets  his 
dealings,  and  transforms  his  shop  into  a  place  of  devo- 
tion; and  the  student  lays  aside  his  books,  to  go 
through  his  accustomed  supplications.  "  Never  to  fail 
in  his  prayers  "  is  the  highest  commendation  a  Turk 
can  receive;  and  so  prejudicial  is  the  suspicion  of  irre- 
ligion,  that  even  libertines  dare  not  disregard  the 
notices  of  the  Maazeen.  The  mosques,  like  chapels  in 
Catholic  countries,  are  always  open,  and  two  or  three 
times  every  day  prayers  are  offered  within  their  walls. 
It  has  often  been  remarked,  that  the  devotions  of 
Christians  might  acquire  something  valuable  from  the 
gravity,  the  decorum,  and  the  apparently  intense  occu- 
pation of  mind  in  Turkish  worship.  The  Jews  trod 
their  holy  place  barefoot:  the  Turks,  on  the  contrary, 
keep  on  their  boots  and  shoes.  Christians  uncover 
their  heads  in  prayer;  the  Moslems  seldom  lay  aside 
their  turbans ;  but  for  hours  they  will  remain  prostrate, 
or  standing  in  one  position,  as  if  absorbed  in  the  most 
intense  abstraction.  They  have  neither  altars,  pictures, 
nor  statues  in  their  places  of  worship.  Verses  of  the 
Koran,  the  names  and  personal  descriptions  of  their 
Prophet,  of  Ali  and  his  two  sons,  Hassan  and  Hosein, 
with  other  Moslem  saints,  are  sometimes  inscribed  in 
letters  of  gold  on  their  walls.  All  distinctions  of  rank 
and  profession  are  forgotten  when  they  pray.  Per- 
sons of  every  class,  on  the  first  sound  of  the  accus- 
tomed cry,  cast  themselves  on  the  ground,  and  thus 
declare  their  belief  in  the  equality  of  mankind,  in  the 
sight  of  the  great  Father  of  all. 

The  Mohammedans  of  Turkey  have  a  Sabbath,  for 
which  the  Jewish  or  Christian  may  be  supposed  to 


SABBATH  OF  THE  TURKS  161 

have  furnished  the  model.    Friday  is  their  day  of  rest, 
which  commences  on  the  preceding  evening,  when  the 
illuminated  minarets  and  colonnades  of  the  mosques 
give  to  their  cities  the  appearance  of  a  festival.     At 
noon,  on  Friday,  all  business  is  suspended,  the  mosques 
are  filled,  and  prayers  are  read  by  the  appointed  officers, 
accompanied  by  the  prostrations  of  the  people.     Dis- 
courses are  likewise  frequently  delivered  on  practical 
points  in  their  theology ;  and,  sometimes,  in  the  ardor 
of   excitement,   political    corruption    and   courtly    de- 
pravity are  fiercely  assailed.    A  voluptuous  sultan  has 
been  known,  under  the  effect  of  these  discourses,  to 
tear  himself  from  the  soft  indulgences  of  his  harem  and 
court,  to  lead  his  martial  subjects  to  war  and  victory 
on  the  plains  of  their  enemies.    As  soon  as  the  public 
religious  services  are  concluded,  all  return  to  their 
ordinary  pursuits;  the  day,  however,  is  strictly  ob- 
served by  all  classes  in  the  manner  prescribed  by  law, 
it  being  a  received  maxim  that  he  who,  without  legiti- 
mate cause,  absents  himself  from  public  devotion  on 
three  successive  Fridays,  abjures  his  religion.     It  is 
worthy  of  observation,  that  the  prayers  of  the  Turks 
consist    chiefly    of    adoration,    of    confessions    of    the 
divine  attributes  and  the  nothingness  of  man,  and  of 
homage  and  gratitude  to  the  Supreme  Being.    A  Turk 
must  not  pray  for  the  frail  and  perishable  blessings  of 
this  life ;  the  health  of  the  sultan,  the  prosperity  of  his 
country,  and  divisions  and  wars  among  the  Christians 
alone  excepted.    The  legitimate  object  of  prayer  they 
hold  to  be  spiritual  gifts,  and  happiness  in  a  future 
state  of  being. 

No    one    of    their    religious    institutions    is    more 
strictly   observed  by  the  Turks  than  the  fast  of  Ram- 

M.  of  H.— XXXIV— 11 


162  FAST  OF  RAMADAN 

adan.  He  who  violates  it  is  reckoned  either  an  infidel 
or  an  apostate;  and  if  two  witnesses  establish  his 
offense,  he  is  deemed  to  have  incurred  the  severest 
penalty  of  the  law.  Abstinence  from  food,  and  even 
from  the  use  of  perfumes,  from  sunrise  to  sunset,  is 
enjoined.  The  rich  pass  the  hours  in  meditation  and 
prayer,  the  grandees  sleep  away  their  time,  but  the 
laboring  man,  pursuing  his  daily  toil,  most  heavily 
feels  its  rigor.  "  When  the  month  of  Ramadan  hap- 
pens in  the  extremities  of  the  seasons,  the  prescribed 
abstinence  is  almost  intolerable,  and  is  more  severe 
than  the  practice  of  any  moral  duty,  even  to  the  most 
vicious  and  depraved  of  mankind."  During  the  day 
all  traffic  is  suspended ;  but  in  the  evening,  and  till  late 
at  night,  it  is  actively  carried  on  in  the  streets,  shops, 
and  bazars,  most  splendidly  illuminated.  From  sunset 
to  sunrise,  revelry  and  excess  are  indulged  in.  Every 
night  there  is  a  feast  among  the  great  officers  of  the 
court:  the  reserve  of  the  Turkish  character  is  laid 
aside,  and  friends  and  relations  cement  their  union  by 
mutual  intercourse.  Sumptuous  banquets  and  con- 
vivial hilarity  are  universal ;  and,  were  not  women 
everywhere  excluded  from  the  tables  of  the  men,  the 
pleasure  of  the  festivals  would  amply  compensate  the 
rigorous  self-denial  of  their  fasts. 

The  pilgrimage  to  Mecca  is  with  the  Turks  more 
a  matter  of  form  than  of  reality.  Its  importance  as  a 
part  of  the  Moslem  ritual  is  admitted,  and  apparently 
felt,  but  the  number  of  pilgrims  annually  decreases. 
The  sultan,  having  dominion  over  the  country  through 
which  the  pilgrims  must  pass,  preserves  the  public 
ways  leading  to  the  venerated  city;  the  best  soldiers 
of  his  empire  are  charged  with  the  protection  of  the 


PROSELYTISM  AMONG  THE  TURKS    163 

caravans,  which  are  sometimes  numerous;  but  of  his 
own  subjects,  properly  so  called,  few  comparatively 
accompany  them ;  they  are  made  up  of  devotees  from 
a  greater  distance.  The  sultan,  no  doubt,  encourages 
the  pilgrimage  as  much  on  commercial  as  on  religious 
grounds.  The  Koran  has  determined  it  to  be  very 
proper  to  intermingle  commerce  and  religion: 
shall  be  no  crime  in  you,"  it  says,  "  if  ye  seek  an  in- 
crease from  your  Lord  by  trading  during  the  pilgrim- 
age." Accordingly,  articles  of  easy  carriage  and  ready 
sale  are  brought  by  the  pilgrims  from  every  country. 
The  productions  and  manufactures  of  India  thus  find 
their  way  into  other  parts  of  Asia  and  throughout 
Africa.  The  muslins  and  chintses  of  Bengal  and  the 
Deccan,  the  shawls  of  Cashmere,  the  pepper  of  Mala- 
bar, the  diamonds  of  Golconda,  the  pearls  of  Kilkau, 
the  cinnamon  of  Ceylon,  and  the  spices  of  the  Mo- 
luccas, are  made  to  yield  advantage  to  the  Ottoman 
empire,  and  the  luxury  of  its  subjects  is  sustained  by 
contributions  from  the  most  distant  nations. 

Mohammedans  of  the  present  day,  at  least  those  of 
Turkey,  are  less  anxious  to  make  proselytes  than  were 
those  of  a  former  age.  Those  of  India  and  Africa,  how- 
ever,  to  a  great  extent,  still  retain  the  sentiment,  that 
to  convert  infidels  is  an  ordinance  of  God,  and  must  be 
observed  by  the  faithful  in  all  ages;  but  in  Turkey 
little  desire  of  this  kind  is  felt,  chiefly  because,  by  a 
refinement  of  uncharitableness,  the  conversion  of  the 
world  is  deemed  unworthy  of  their  endeavors.  Now 
and  then  a  devout  Moslem,  instigated  by  zeal  or  per- 
sonal attachment,  may  offer  up  this  prayer  for  a  Jew 
or  a  Christian:  "Great  God,  enlighten  this  infidel, 
and  graciously  dispose  his  heart  to  embrace  thy  holy 


164  THE  OULEMA 

religion  ;  "  and  perhaps  to  a  youth,  esteemed  for  his  tal- 
ents or  knowledge,  the  language  of  persuasion  may 
occasionally  be  addressed  with  an  air  of  gentleness 
and  urbanity;  but  the  zeal  of  the  missionary  is  in  such 
cases  commonly  subject  to  what  are  conceived  to  be 
the  rules  of  good  breeding,  and  a  vague  reply  or  silence 
is  regarded  as  an  indication  that  the  subject  is  dis- 
agreeable, and  should  not  be  continued.  A  Mussulman 
may  pray  for  the  conversion  of  infidels,  but,  till  they 
are  converted,  no  blessing  may  be  supplicated  in  their 
behalf.  "  Their  death  is  eternal,  why  pray  for  them?  " 
is  the  language  of  the  Mohammedan  creed :  do  not 
"  defile  your  feet  by  passing  over  the  graves  of  men 
who  are  enemies  of  God  and  of  his  Prophet." 

Of  the  Mohammedan  hierarchy,  some  idea  may  be 
obtained  from  the  form  it  assumes  in  Turkey.  The 
Koran  is  considered  the  treasure  of  all  laws,  divine 
and  human,  and  the  caliphs  as  the  depositaries  of  this 
treasure ;  so  that  they  are  at  once  the  pontiffs,  legisla- 
tors, and  judges  of  the  people,  and  their  office  com- 
bines all  authority,  whether  sacerdotal,  regal,  or  judi- 
cial. To  the  grand  sultan  titles  are  given,  styling  him 
the  vicar,  or  the  shadow  of  God.  The  several  powers 
which  pertain  to  him  in  this  august^capacity  are  dele- 
gated to  a  body  of  learned  men,  called  the  Oulema.  In 
this  body  three  descriptions  of  officers  are  included: 
the  ministers  of  religion,  called  the  Imams ;  the  ex- 
pounders of  the  law,  called  the  Muftis;  and  the  min- 
isters of  justice,  called  the  Cadis.  The  ministers  of 
religion  are  divided  into  chief  and  inferior,  the  former 
of  whom  only  belong  to  the  Oulema.  Both  classes  are 
made  up  of  Sheiks,  or  ordinary  preachers  ;  the  Khatibs, 
readers  or  deacons;  the  Imams,  a  title  comprising 


MINISTERS  OF  RELIGION  165 

those  who  perform  the  service  of  the  mosque  on  or- 
dinary days,  and  those  to  whom  pertain  the  ceremonies 
of  circumcision,  marriage,  and  burial;  the  Maazeens, 
or  criers,  who  announce  the  hours  of  prayer;  and  the 
Cayuns,  or  common  attendants  of  the  mosque.     The 
idea  of  this  classification  was,  perhaps,  taken  from  the 
Mosaic  priesthood;  the  Khatib  being  the  Aaron,  and 
the  next  four  the  several  orders  of  the  Levites,  with 
their  servants  or  helpers.    The  imperial  temples  have 
one    Sheik,   one    Khatib,    from    two   to   four    Imams, 
twelve  Maazeens,  and  twenty  Cayuns,  among  whom, 
except  in  a  few  of  the  chief  mosques  of  Constantinople, 
the  Khatibs  have  the  pre-eminence.     All  these  min- 
isters are  subject  to  the  civil  magistrate,  who  is  looked 
upon  as  a  sort  of  diocesan,  and  who  may  perform  at 
any  time  all  the  sacerdotal  functions.     The  ministers 
of  religion  are  not  distinguishable  from  other  people; 
they  mix  in  the  same  society,  engage  in  similar  pur- 
suits, and  affect  no  greater  austerity  than  marks  the 
behavior  of  Mussulmans   generally.     Their  influence 
depends  entirely  on  their  reputation  for  learning  and 
talents,  for  gravity  and  correct  moral  conduct;  their 
employment  is,   for  the   most  part,   very   simple,   as 
chanting  aloud  the  public  service,  and  performing  such 
offices  as  every  master  of  a  family  may  discharge.    As 
Mohammedanism   acknowledges   no   sacrifices,   it  ap- 
points no  priests;  the  duties  performed  by  the  min- 
isters of  religion  being  seemingly  devolved  on  them 
more  as  a  matter  of  convenience  than  on  account  of 
any  sacredness  attaching  to  their  order. 

The  vast  country  to  which  the  general  name  of 
Tartary  has  been  given,  is  that  from  whence  Mo- 
hammedanism has  gone  forth  to  the  East,  the  West, 


166  EXTENT  OF  THE  MOHAMMEDAN  FAITH 

and  the  South.  In  Thibet,  the  Grand  Lama  and  vari- 
ous national  idols  hold  divided  empire  with  the 
Prophet;  and  in  the  inhospitable  regions  of  Siberia, 
the  churches  of  Greece  and  Russia  have  successfully 
promulgated  the  Christian  doctrines;  while  the  Cir- 
cassians, with  some  other  Tartar  races,  are  almost 
without  religion.  In  the  Crimea,  the  people  are  Mus- 
sulmans, as  rigid  and  devoted  as  the  Turks;  and  over 
the  vast  tract  called  by  modern  geographers  Russian 
and  Chinese  Tartary,  the  crescent  triumphantly  waves. 
From  these  regions  sprung,  in  the  earlier  ages  of  Mo- 
hammedan conquest,  those  vast  empires  which,  in  the 
East,  comprise  so  large  a  number  of  the  professors  of 
the  faith  of  Islam.  The  first  sovereign  of  this  country, 
to  whom  the  title  of  sultan  was  awarded  early  in  the 
tenth  century,  conducted  several  expeditions  into  Hin- 
dustan, and  secured  the 'homage  of  many  of  the  cities. 
The  ancient  Indian  superstition  was  in  a  great  measure 
overturned  by  his  victorious  arms.  Long  and  fierce 
contests  ensued :  the  princes  of  the  subdued  provinces, 
often  throwing  off  their  forced  allegiance,  endeavored 
to  regain  their  independence  and  re-establish  their 
ancient  faith,  till,  at  length,  the  great  Timtirlane,  hav- 
ing overrun  the  country  with  his  legions,  received  at 
Agra  the  title  of  Emperor  of  Hindustan.  Scarcely, 
however,  had  two  centuries  and  a  half  rolled  away, 
when  his  successors  fell  in  their  turn  under  the  Per- 
sian power;  and  the  empire  he  established  was  weak- 
ened, and  ultimately  destroyed.  As  the  result  of  these 
conquests,  Mohammedanism  prevailed  to  a  great  ex- 
tent, but  rather  nominally  than  really,  among  the  mil- 
lions of  India:  it  was  the  religion  of  the  court  and  gov- 
ernment; but,  either  from  indifference  or  timidity  in 


HINDUSTAN  TARTARS  AND  PERSIANS  167 

the  Moslem  conquerors,  the  ancient  idols  still  held  ex- 
tensive  influence,   and   were   at  length   gradually   re- 
stored.    In  the  twelfth  century,  Benares,  the  ancient 
seat  of  Brahminical  learning  and  of  Hindu  idolatry, 
fell  into  the  hands  of  the  conqueror,  who  destroyed  its 
numerous   objects   of   popular   adoration.     Yet,   soon 
afterward,   the   religious   character  of  the   place  was 
restored,  and  the  demolished  idols  were  replaced  by 
others,  that  were  as  eagerly  resorted  to  as  had  been 
their  predecessors.     To  this  consecrated   metropolis, 
a  pilgrimage  was  regarded  by  the  millions  of  India  as 
imperatively  commanded,  and  as  necessary  as  was  a 
visit  to  Mecca  by  the  Mohammedans ;  and  the  weak- 
ness or  the  policy  of  its  Moslem  conquerors  did  not 
long  withhold  from  them  this  valued  privilege;  the 
government  of  the  city  was  committed  to  the  Hindus, 
and  their  conquerors,  in  the  plenitude  of  their  bigotry, 
pride,  and  power,  never  thought  of  suffering  their  own 
magistrates    to    exercise    authority   within    its   walls. 
Thus    Mohammedanism    is    the    religion,    not   of   the 
ancient  inhabitants  of  India,  but  of  the  descendants  of 
the  millions  of  Tartars,  Persians,  and  Arabians  who, 
at  various  periods,  have  left  their  native  seats  to  par- 
ticipate in  the  riches  of  these  far-famed  plains.     The 
north  and  northwestern  parts  are  filled  with  them,  and 
from  thence  they  have  wandered  over  the  whole  of 
that  vast  country.     Perhaps  their  numbers  may  now 
amount  to  nearly  sixty-three  millions,  among  whom, 
however,  though  they  are  mostly  of  foreign  extraction, 
are  many  converts  from  Hinduism.   They  form  separate 
communities,  amalgamating  in  some  parts  of  the  coun- 
try, and  living  as  sociably  with  Hindus  as  the  differ- 
ences in  their  respective  faiths  will  permit.     Hindu 


168  THE  SIKHS  OF  INDIA 

princes  have  at  times  paid  their  devotions  at  Mo- 
hammedan shrines,  and  observed  their  feasts ;  while 
Mohammedans  have  relaxed  somewhat  the  strictness 
of  their  observances,  and  manifested  an  inclination  to 
conform,  as  far  as  possible,  to  their  Hindu  neighbors. 
Some  five  centuries  ago,  the  Borahs,  a  people  who 
once  occupied  the  kingdom  of  Guzerat,  were  converted 
en  masse  to  Islamism.  The  Arab  traders  to  the  coasts 
of  Malabar  have  always  been  exceedingly  earnest  in 
their  endeavors  to  convert  the  natives,  in  which  they 
have  been  greatly  aided  by  the  facility  with  which 
they  have  been  allowed  to  purchase  the  children  of  the 
poorer  classes,  to  educate  them  in  the  principles  of 
their  faith,  and  also  by  the  frequency  with  which  the 
inhabitants  of  those  districts  lose  caste.  This  badge 
of  the  Hindu  faith  is  often  forfeited  by  the  people  mix- 
ing with  those  of  other  countries,  and  when  it  is  lost 
they  easily  become  Moslems. 

It  has  been  maintained  that  the  native  inhabitants 
of  India  are  absolutely  unchangeable  in  their  sacred, 
domestic,  and  political  institutions,  and,  at  first  sight, 
there  would  appear  to  be  much  to  warrant  such  an 
opinion;  but  the  history  of  many  of  them,  and 
especially  of  the  Sikhs,  who  inhabit  the  provinces  of 
the  Panjab,  between  the  rivers  Jumna  and  Indus,  may 
be  alleged  as  proofs  to  the  contrary.  Still,  in  the  relig- 
ion of  the  Sikhs,  Mohammedan  fable  and  Hindu  ab- 
surdity are  mixed ;  its  founder  wishing  to  unite  both 
these  prevalent  systems  in  one.  He  had  been  educated 
in  a  part  of  the  country  where  these  two  religions  ap- 
peared to  touch  each  other,  if  not  commingle,  and  he 
was  no  stranger  to  the  violent  animosity  existing  be- 
tween their  respective  professors ;  he  sought,  therefore, 


MOHAMMEDANISM  IN  CHINA          169 

to  blend  the  jarring  elements  of  both  in  peaceful  union 
The  Hindu  was  required  to  abandon  his  idols,  and  to 
worship  the  one  Supreme  Deity  whom  his  religion 
acknowledged;  while  the  Mohammedan  was  to  ab- 
stain from  such  practices  (especially  the  killing  of 
cows)  as  were  offensive  to  the  superstition  of  the 
Hindus.  This  plan  so  far  prevailed,  that,  without  ac- 
knowledging the  Prophet,  the  Sikhs  became  more  Mo- 
hammedans than  Hindus;  and  though  the  institutions 
of  Brahma  are  not  admitted  among  them,  they  insult 
and  persecute  true  Moslems  more  fiercely  and  cruelly 
than  any  other  people.  They  compel  them  to  eat  that 
which  is  forbidden  by  their  law;  animals  which  they 
account  unclean  are  frequently  thrown  into  their 
places  of  public  assembly,  and  they  are  prohibited  from 
proclaiming  the  hour  of  prayer  to  the  faithful. 

China  is  one  of  those  countries  to  which  Mo- 
hammedanism was  carried  by  the  hordes  of  Tartary. 
From  the  scrupulous  jealousy  with  which  this  vast 
empire  is  guarded  from  observation,  it  is  difficult  to 
say  to  what  extent  the  Mohammedan  faith,  or,  indeed, 
any  other,  prevails  among  its  numberless  inhabitants; 
but  beyond  question,  it  is  tolerated. 

The  irruption  of  the  Saracens  into  China  under 
Walid  can  scarcely  be  termed  a  conquest.  Subse- 
quently, the  successors'of  Genghis  Khan  seated  them- 
selves on  the  throne  of  Pekin,  and  opened  the  country 
to  an  intercourse  with  all  nations.  The  commercial 
Arabs  had  visited  the  ports  and  cities  in  the  south  of 
China;  and,  now  that  access  to  the  capital  was  un- 
restrained, multitudes  of  them  repaired  thither.  They 
acquired  the  language,  and  adopted  the  dress  and  man- 
ners of  the  people,  to  whom  also  they  rendered  valuable 


170         MOHAMMEDANISM  IN  PERSIA 

aid  in  adjusting  their  chronology,  and  making  the 
necessary  calculations  for  their  calendar.  Intercourse 
with  the  Chinese  made  the  Mohammedans  desirous  of 
effecting  their  conversion,  the  means  adopted  for 
which  were  both  wise  and  humane.  Deserted  children 
were  taken  under  their  protection,  and  educated  in 
Islamism ;  while  in  other  ways  they,  sought  to  com- 
mend themselves  to  confidence,  and  their  religion  to 
respect,  by  alleviating  the  wretchedness  induced  by  a 
cruel  superstition.  The  Mohammedans  of  China  seem 
to  partake  of  the  mild  and  quiet  character  of  the  inhab- 
itants generally,  and  are  therefore  tolerated;  though 
there  have  been  some  exceptions  to  this  encomium. 

In  the  year  of  1784  they  were  instrumental  in  pro- 
moting an  unsuccessful  rebellion,  and  the  Emperor 
Kien  Long,  after  suppressing  it,  ordered  one  hundred 
thousand  of  them  to  be  put  to  death. 

Persia,  from  an  early  period,  has  been  almost  en- 
tirely a  Mohammedan  country.  On  its  conquest  by 
the  Saracens,  the  religion  of  Zoroaster,  which  had  till 
then  prevailed,  was  nearly  abolished.  Those  who  per- 
severed in  retaining  it  were  obliged  to  flee  to  the 
mountains  or  to  the  western  parts  of  India,  where  their 
old  forms  of  worship  still  linger.  In  the  disputes 
which  ensued  on  the  death  of  Mohammed  concerning 
the  caliphate,  the  Persians  espoused  the  cause  of  AH, 
the  Prophet's  son-in-law,  and  to  his  memory  they  are 
still  attached.  "  May  this  arrow  go  to  the  heart  of 
Omar,"  is  a  frequent  expression  among  them  in  draw- 
ing a  bow  ;  and  not  long  since,  when  Mr.  Malcolm,  dur- 
ing his  travels  in  Persia,  was  praising  Omar,  the  an- 
tagonist of  Ali,  as  the  greatest  of  the  caliphs,  a  Persian, 
overcome  by  the  justice  of  his  observations,  yet  still 


MOHAMMEDANISM  IN  AFRICA         171 

adhering  to  his  rooted  prejudices,  replied.  "  This  is  all 
very  true,  but  he  was  a  dog  after  all." 

Here  Mohammedanism  exists  in  a  less  rigorous 
form  than  in  Turkey.  Its  ceremonies  are  observed  by 
those  who  are  little  disposed  to  practice  its  moral 
code :  they  say  their  prayers  at  the  appointed  season, 
and  make  a  show  of  devotion  to  prevent  their  being 
suspected  of  irreligion;  but  the  people  generally  are 
little  concerned  about  the  pilgrimage  to  Mecca,  and 
other  matters  on  which,  in  the  Koran,  much  stress  is 
laid.  They  choose  rather  to  resort  to  the  tomb  of  Ali, 
and  to  that  of  his  son  Hosein,  whose  name  is  rever- 
enced among  them  with  a  feeling  approaching  to 
adoration. 

In  Africa,  Mohammedanism  has  very  widely  pre- 
vailed. Algiers,  Tunis,  Tripoli,  all  the  northern  parts 
of  this  continent,  acknowledge  its  sway.  From 
Arabia  and  Egypt  it  spread  west  and  south  nearly  to 
the  great  rivers.  It  is  the  established  religion  of 
Morocco;  and  in  Western  Barbary  and  in  many  re- 
gions of  the  interior  the  Arabic  language  is  spoken, 
the  Koran  believed,  and  the  Prophet  almost  wor- 
shipped. The  Senegal,  up  to  the  small  Moorish  state 
of  Gedumah,  is  the  line  of  division  between  the  Mo- 
hammedans and  the  Negroes :  from  thence  the  line 
passes  eastward  of  north,  through  Nigritia  and  Nubia 
to  the  Nile.  As  yet,  however,  it  is  but  indistinctly 
marked,  it  being  doubtful  whether  Timbuctoo  is  a  Mo- 
hammedan or  Negro  town.  The  courts  of  Bornou  and 
Cassina  are  Mohammedan,  but  a  majority  of  their  sub- 
jects are  pagans.  Islamism  in  these  vast  territories  is 
in  an  exceedingly  degenerate  state  when  compared 
with  either  its  first  development  in  the  Arabian  desert, 


172         MOHAMMEDANISM  IX  ARABIA 

or  with  what  now  obtains  in  Turkey.  It  is  said  that 
but  little  more  than  its  exclusive  persecuting  spirit  re- 
mains :  the  Oriental  lustrations  are  almost  unknown, 
Mohammedan  temperance  is  neglected,  arfd  the  great 
doctrine  of  the  unity  of  God  is  confounded  with,  or 
supplanted  by,  the  polytheism  of  the  native  inhab- 
itants. The  Mussulman  is  more  depraved  than  the 
pagan  ;  so  that,  while  travelers  frequently  mention  the 
hospitality  they  received  from  the  latter,  by  the  former 
they  were  constantly  insulted  and  annoyed  on  account 
of  their  religion.  In  no  quarter  of  the  world  does  the 
faith  of  the  Prophet  wear  so  frightful  an  aspect  as  in 
Africa. 

The  region  from  which  Mohammedanism  first 
sprung  has  not  remained  in  all  respects  faithful  to  the 
precepts  of  the  Prophet.  In  Mecca  and  Medina,  in- 
deed, his  name  and  system  are  held  in  the  profoundest 
veneration ;  and  no  wonder,  since  both  these  cities  are 
mainly  supported  by  the  superstitious  observances  en- 
joined in  the  Koran ;  but  the  Bedouins  are  as  licentious 
in  their  religion  as  in  their  policy  and  habits.  On  the 
Turkish  frontiers  they  keep  up  an  appearance  of  re- 
spect for  the  name  of  the  Prophet  and  his  doctrines; 
but.  in  answer  to  all  reproaches  for  their  unfaithful- 
ness, they  say  in  words  worthy  a  better  taught  and 
more  civilized  race,  "  The  religion  of  Mohammed  could 
never  have  been  intended  for  us.  We  have  no  water 
in  the  desert.  How,  then,  can  we  make  the  prescribed 
ablutions?  We  have  no  money.  How,  then,  can  we 
give  alms?  The  fast  of  Ramadan  is  a  useless  command 
to  persons  who  fast  all  the  year  round ;  and,  if  God  be 
everywhere,  why  should  we  go  to  Mecca  to  adore 
him?" 


SOOFFEES  AND  WAHABEES  173 

From  the  southernmost  part  of  Hindustan,  Mo- 
hammedanism made  its  way  to  the  Malayan  peninsula ; 
to  Sumatra,  Java,  Borneo,  the  Manilas,  and  the 
Celebes :  Goram,  one  of  the  Spice  Islands,  is  its  eastern 
boundary.  In  the  interior  of  these  islands  it  prevails 
less  than  on  the  shores.  To  these  remote  regions 
Islamism  has  been  carried  more  by  the  commercial  than 
the  military  enterprise  of  its  votaries.  What  is  its 
present  condition  there,  it  is  difficult,  perhaps  impos- 
sible, accurately  to  ascertain.  In  Java  it  was  the  es- 
tablished religion ;  but,  when  the  Dutch  settled  that 
island  early  in  the  seventeenth  century,  many  of  the 
natives  were  converted.  Little  respect  is  paid  by  the 
Javans  of  the  present  day  either  to  their  ancient  pagan- 
ism, or  to  Mohammedanism  which  took  its  place ; 
though  some  of  the  forms  of  the  latter  are  still  in 
force,  and  its  institutions  are  said  to  be  gaining  ground. 

The  reader  of  Mohammedan  history  will  meet  with 
the  terms  Sooffee  and  Wahabee,  as  designating  cer- 
tain divisions  of  the  disciples  of  the  religion  of  the 
Prophet.  It  will  not,  therefore,  be  inappropriate  to 
close  with  a  brief  account  of  these  respective  sects. 

Sooffee  is  a  term  originating  in  Persia,  meaning 
enthusiasts  or  mystics,  or  persons  distinguished  by  ex- 
traordinary sanctity.  The  object  of  the  Sooffee  is  to 
attain  a  divine  beatitude,  which  he  describes  as  con- 
sisting in  absorption  into  the  essence  of  Deity.  The 
soul,  according  to  his  doctrine,  is  an  emanation  from 
God,  partaking  of  his  nature;  just  as  the  rays  of  light 
are  emanations  from  the  sun,  and  of  the  same  nature 
with  the  source  from  whence  they  are  derived. 
The  cifature  and  the  Creator  are  of  one  substance. 
No  one  can  become  a  Sooffee  without  strictly  conform- 


174  SOOFFEES  OF  PERSIA 

ing  to  the  established  religion,  and  practicing  every 
social  virtue ;  and  when,  by  this  means,  he  has  gained 
a  habit  of  devotion,  he  may  exchange  what  they  style 
practical  for  spiritual  worship,  and  abandon  the  ob- 
servance of  all  religious  forms  and  ceremonies.  He  at 
length  becomes  inspired,  arrives  at.  truth,  drops  his 
corporeal  veil,  and  mixes  again  with  that  glorious  es- 
sence from  which  he  has  been  partially  and  for  a  time 
separated.  The  life  of  the  Sooffees  of  Persia,  though 
generally  austere,  is  not  rendered  miserable,  like  that 
of  the  visionary  devotees  of  Hinduism,  by  the  practice 
of  dreadful  severities,  their  most  celebrated  teachers 
have  been  famed  for  knowledge  and  devotion.  The 
Persians  are  a  poetic  people,  and  the  very  genius  of 
Sooffeeism  is  poetry.  Its  raptures  are  the  raptures  of 
inspiration ;  its  hopes  are  those  of  a  highly  sensitive 
and  excited  imagination ;  its  writers  in  the  sweetest 
strains  celebrate  the  Divine  love,  which  pervades  all 
nature:  everything,  from  the  very  highest  to  the  low- 
est, seeking  and  tending  towards  union  with  Deity  as 
its  object  of  supreme  desire.  They  inculcate  forbear- 
ance, abstemiousness,  and  universal  benevolence.  They 
are  unqualified  predestinarians.  The  emanating  prin- 
ciple, or  the  soul,  proceeding  from  God,  can  do  nothing, 
they  say,  without  his  will,  nor  refuse  to  do  anything 
which  he  instigates.  Some  of  them,  consequently, 
deny  the  existence  of  evil ;  and  the  doctrine  of  rewards 
and  punishments  is  superseded  by  their  idea  of  re- 
absorption  into  the  Divine  essence.  The  free  opinions 
of  this  class  of  enthusiasts  subvert  the  doctrines  of 
Islamism,  yet  they  pay  an  outward  respect  to  them; 
they  unsettle  the  existing  belief,  without  providing  an 
intelligible  substitute;  they  admit  the  divine  mission 


WAHABEES,  ABDOL  WAHAB  175 

of  the  Prophet,  but  explain  away  the  dogmas  he  ut- 
tered; and  while  they  affect  to  yield  him  honor  as  a 
person  raised  up  by  God,  to  induce  moral  order  in  the 
world,  they  boast  their  own  direct  and  familiar  inter- 
course with  Deity,  and  claim,  on  that  account,  un- 
qualified obedience  in  all  that  relates  to  spiritual  in- 
terests. 

The  similarity  of  Sooffeeism  to  the  ancient  Pytha- 
gorean and  Platonic  doctrines  will  occur  to  every  one 
at  all  acquainted  with  the  religion  and  philosophy  of 
antiquity.  It  as  closely  resembles  some  of  the  dis- 
tinguishing tenets  of  the  Brahminical  faith.  In  fact, 
it  seems  as  if  designed,  in  conjunction  with  the  refined 
theology  of  ancient,  and  the  sublime  visions  of  modern 
idolaters,  to  teach  us  that,  without  Divine  guidance, 
the  loftiest  human  conceptions  on  subjects  connected 
with  God  and  religion  invariably  err ;  the  ignorant  and 
the  instructed  are  equally  wrong;  "the  world  by  wis- 
dom knows  not  God." 

The  Wahabees  are  a  modern  sect  of  Mohammedan 
reformers,  whose  efforts  have  considerably  changed 
the  aspect  of  the  religion  of  the  Prophet.  Perhaps  to 
them  may  be  owing  much  of  that  rigid  adherence  to 
Mohammedan  doctrine  and  practice  which  prevails 
in  those  parts  where  their  influence  has  been  felt. 
They  are  the  followers  of  Abdal  Wahab,  who  com- 
menced his  career  in  the  region  where,  during  the  life- 
time of  the  Prophet,  Moseilama  had  threatened  a  con- 
siderable division  among  his  followers.  Wahab  was 
an  ambitious  fanatic,  who  aimed,  nevertheless,  at  re- 
forming the  national  religion.  He  was  aided  by  pow- 
erful princes  of  the  province  of  Nejed;  and,  within  a 


176       DOCTRINES  OF  THE  WAHABEES 

short  time,  the  tenets  he  maintained  spread  throughout 
the  peninsula.  His  fundamental  principle,  like  that  of 
Mohammed,  was  the  unity  of  God.  The  Koran  he  re- 
garded as  divine,  rejecting  all  the  glosses  which  ig- 
norance and  infatuation  had  put  upon  it,  and  holding 
in  utter  contempt  all  the  traditions  and  tales  concern- 
ing its  author,  which  the  devout  of  every  generation 
had  eagerly  received.  The  reverence,  approaching  to 
adoration,  which  the  Arabs  were  wont  to  pay  to  the 
name  of  Mohammed,  all  visits  to  his  tomb,  and  all 
regard  to  the  tombs  and  relics  of  Arab  saints,  he  de- 
nounced; and  the  costly  ornaments  with  which  a  mis- 
taken piety  had  enriched  these  sacred  spots,  he  thought 
might  be  appropriated  to  ordinary  purposes.  Wahab 
would  not  suffer  the  common  oath  of,  by  Mohammed, 
or  by  Ali,  to  be  used  among  his  followers,  on  the  very 
rational  ground  that  an  oath  is  an  appeal  to  a  witness 
of  our  secret  thoughts,  and  who  can  know  these  but 
God?  The  title  of  Lord,  generally  given  to  the 
Prophet  by  his  followers,  Wahab  rejected  as  impious. 
He  was  commonly  mentioned  by  this  zealous  re- 
former and  his  adherents  by  his  simple  name,  without 
the  addition  of  "  our  Lord,  the  Prophet  of  God."  All 
who  deviated  in  any  degree  from  the  plain  sense  of  the 
.Koran,  either  in  belief  or  practice,  were  infidels  in 
their  esteem ;  upon  whom,  therefore,  according  to  its 
directions,  war  might  be  made.  Thus  was  the  martial 
spirit  of  the  early  Saracens  again  called  into  exercise; 
and  with  the  ardor  that  characterized  the  days  of  the 
immediate  successors  of  the  Prophet,  they  were  pre- 
pared at  once  to  assail  the  consciences  and  the  property 
of  men  not  exactly  of  their  own  faith. 


MILITARY  SUCCESS  OF  THE  WAHABEES  177 

At  the  call  of  their  leader,  they  assembled  first  in 
the  plain  of  Draaiya,  some  400  miles  east  of  Medina, 
armed  and  provided  at  their  own  expense  for  war. 
Bagdad  and  Mecca  in  vain  attempted  to  suppress  them ; 
the  seraglio  itself  was  filled  with  their  formidable  war- 
cry  ;  the  sultan  trembled  on  his  throne ;  and  the  cara- 
vans from  Syria  suspended' their  usual  journeys.  The 
imperial  city  suffered  from  their  ravages  in  its  usual 
supplies  of  coffee;  and  the  terror  of  their  name  was 
widely  spreading  among  -devout  Mohammedans  of 
every  country,  for  they  had  violated  the  shrines  of 
saints,  and  leveled  to  the  ground  the  chapels  at  Mecca, 
which  devotion  had  consecrated  to  the  memory  of  the 
Prophet  and  his  family.  At  the  commencement  of  the 
present  century,  however,  Mecca  was  recovered  from 
{.hem  by  the  Turkish  arms,  and  the  plague,  with  the 
smallpox,  breaking  out  just  at  this  time  among  the  fol- 
lowers of  Wahab,  probably  saved  the  mighty  fabric  of 
Islamism.  These  reverses  did  not  quench,  however, 
the  ardor  of  the  Wahabees.  Their  leader  had  been 
assassinated,  but  his  son,  already  distinguished  for  his 
prudence  and  valor,  succeeded  him  in  the  command. 
Medina  fell  beneath  his  power,  and  from  thence  to  the 
Persian  Gulf  he  seemed  likely  to  reign  lord  paramount. 
In  1805  he  was  able  to  impose  a  heavy  tax  on  the  car- 
avan of  pilgrims  from  Damascus  to  the  Holy  City,  and 
declared  that  thenceforth  it  should  consist  of  pilgrims 
alone,  without  the  pride  and  pomp  of  a  religious  pro- 
cession. Soon  afterward  they  again  entered  Mecca, 
and  immediately  threatened  with  destruction  every 
sacred  relic;  but  they  did  not  put  their  threats  into 
execution.  Various  conflicts  between  them  and  the 

M.  of  H.— XXXIV— 12 


178    INTOLERANCE  OF  THE  \YAIIABEES 

orthodox  Mohammedans  have  since  ensued,  the  gen- 
eral result  of  which  has  been  to  break  the  martial  and 
fanatical  spirfl  of  the  Wahabees,  and  to  re-establish 
the  power  of  the  grand  sultan  in  cities  and  districts 
where  it  had  been  placed  in  jeopardy.  They  are  still, 
indeed,  dreaded  as  plunderers,  but  no  great  national 
convulsion  has  resulted  from  their  efforts. 

Some  writers  regret  the  suppression  of  this  once 
powerful  sect  of  Mohammedans,  believing  that,  if  con- 
tinued, they  would  have  been  instrumental  in  over- 
throwing the  Moslem  faith,  and  making  way  for  a 
purer  religion ;  but  for  ourselves,  we  see  little  occasion 
for  these  regrets.  The  Wahabees  must  not  be  sup- 
posed more  favorable  to  a  pure  faith  than  are  those  by 
whom  they  have  been  overthrown.  If  they  must  be 
regarded  as  reformers,  they  only  attempted  to  correct 
a  few  absurb  and  scandalous  practices :  the  impious 
and  abominable  dogmas  of  the  Koran  they  left  un- 
touched ;  or,  if  they  touched  them,  it  was  only  to  en- 
force their  observance  with  greater  rigor.  Their  creed 
was  even  more  sanguinary  and  intolerant  than  that  of 
the  ancient  Mohammedans,  and  probably  the  continu- 
ance of  their  power  would  have  been  nothing  more  than 
the  continuance  of  injustice,  cruelty  and  persecution. 
We  do  not  look  for  the  overthrow  of  Mohammedanism 
by  such  means.  One  system  of  error  may  sometimes 
destroy  another,  but  the  pure  faith,  which  blesses  a 
miserable  world  by  directing  men  in  the  path  of  safety, 
knowledge,  and  happiness,  will  extend  only  as  the 
sacred  volume  is  diffused,  and  as  that  holy  influence 
from  God  accompanies  it  by  which  the  understanding 
is  illuminated  and  the  heart  renewed.  Fanaticism  is 
no  auxiliary  of  the  religion  of  the  Bible ;  it  neither  pre- 


RELIGION  OF  THE  BIBLE 


179 


pares  its  way  nor  accelerates  its  progress.  Violence 
and  war  are  utterly  rejected  by  this  divine  system,  as 
alien  from  its  spirit  and  character.  "  My  kingdom," 
says  its  founder,  "  is  not  of  this  world :  if  my  kingdom 
were  of  this  world,  then  would  my  servants  fight ;  but 
now  is  my  kingdom  not  from  hence." 


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